i^:, 


ORIENTAL  RVGS 


BY 


JOHN  KIMBERLY  MVMFORD 


NEW  YORK 
CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 

MCMXXI 


Copyright,    1900,    1902,   by 
Charles  Scribner's  Sons. 


A II  rights  reserved. 


IffiCORATIVE  Aiil' 


132,1 


cti.- 


PREFACE  TO  THE  FOURTH  EDITION 

IN  the  fifteen  years  that  have  elapsed  since  the  first 
appearance  of  "Oriental  Rugs"  momentous  changes 
have  taken  place  in  the  Orient.  The  past  decade  has 
witnessed  in  Persia  the  downfall  of  a  dynasty,  and  indeed 
of  the  throne  itself.  The  oldest  of  empires  has  been  for  a 
space  the  newest  of  republics,  and  is  now  beyond  question 
far  advanced  toward  the  inevitable  partition.  While  these 
lines  are  being  written  the  Turkish  forts  at  the  gateways  of 
Constantinople  are  trembling  under  the  assault  of  Russian, 
French,  and  English  guns,  and  the  Ottoman  power,  after  five 
centuries  of  guile  and  audacity,  is  turning  its  face  again 
toward  Asia,  whence  it  stormed  down  upon  Europe  in  the 
far-away  day  of  its  strength. 

These  and  manifold  other  mutations  in  the  Oriental 
countries  cannot  but  have  had  their  effect  upon  the  rug- 
weaving  industry,  and  even  more  obviously  upon  the  rug- 
weaving  art.  But  all  these  changes  have  tended  in  the  one 
direction,  which  was  foretold  when  the  original  edition  of 
this  book  was  published.  Hand  in  hand  with  the  political 
movements  in  Asia  has  gone  the  promised  commercialization 
of  weaving.     By  far  the  greater  part  of  the  rug  making  of 

V 

iM86005l 


PREFACE 

Turkey  is  now  controlled  by  a  trust,  and  the  industry  in 
Persia  is  rapidly  coming  under  the  same  influence. 

Since  the  avowed  purpose  of  this  book  in  the  beginning 
was  to  describe,  identify,  and  expound  the  old,  native  rugs  of 
the  Orient,  there  seems  to  be  no  reason  why  any  measure  of 
attention  should  now  be  given  to  modern  "grades,"  which 
under  corporate  dictation  have  come  to  be  manufactured  in 
vast  numbers  and  in  standard  commercial  sizes,  on  contract 
looms,  taking  their  inspiration  almost  wholly  from  Paris, 
London,  and  New  York.  With  these  Occidental  inventions 
of  the  latter  day  this  book  has  no  more  to  do  than  with 
the  new  products  of  the  Worcester  and  Philadelphia  carpet 
looms.  The  one  variety  is  as  thoroughly  commercial  as  the 
other,  though  the  Oriental  fabric,  for  divers  reasons,  is  still 
made  by  hand. 

Although  a  round  dozen  of  books  about  rugs  have  issued 
from  American  presses  in  as  many  years,  the  author  and  pub- 
lishers of  this  work  are  pleased  to  note  that,  concerning  itself 
with  the  purely  native  rugs,  it  has  maintained  its  status  in 
public  favor  through  all  this  time.  Succeeding  books  have 
only  amplified  its  outline.  Several  times  since  its  first  publi- 
cation the  book  has  been  reprinted,  and  each  fresh  supply  has 
encountered  an  almost  undiminished  demand.  The  present 
volume,  in  somewhat  altered  form  and  garb,  and  constructed 
with  the  aid  of  newer  and  less  expensive  manufacturing  proc- 
esses, is  offered  in  the  belief  that  it  will  meet  the  need  of 
those  who  have  been  deterred  by  the  necessarily  high  cost 
from  possessing  themselves  of  copies  from  the  preceding 
editions. 

vl 


PREFACE 

The  text,  plate-subjects,  textile  tables,  et  cetera,  are  prac- 
tically the  same  as  those  of  the  earlier  imprints.  An  error, 
however,  important  to  the  student,  has  been  corrected,  and  the 
story  thereof  is  interesting.  It  has  to  do  with  the  Soumaki, 
or  so-called  "Kashmir,"  rugs  of  the  Caucasus,  discussion  of 
which  will  be  found  on  page  119.  Between  1896  and  1899 
the  author  expended  considerable  time  in  an  effort  to  trace 
the  origin  of  the  name  Soumaki,  and  was  forced  to  the  con- 
clusion that  it  was  either  an  obsolete  form  or  a  corruption  of 
"Shemakha,"  the  name  of  a  hill  city  in  eastern  Caucasia,  in 
the  neighborhood  where  these  rugs  were  known  to  have  been 
made  for  centuries. 

In  Batoum,  Russia,  on  a  subsequent  journey,  this  ques- 
tion was  discussed  with  the  United  States  consul  at  that  port, 
Mr.  James  C.  Chambers,  himself  an  amateur  of  rugs.  Mr. 
Chambers  scouted  this  derivation,  insisting  that  he  had  seen 
an  old  map  showing  a  khanate  of  Soumaki,  which  lay  to  the 
west  of  Shirvan,  but  which  had  been  gerrymandered  out  of 
existence  by  the  Russians  early  in  the  nineteenth  century. 
A  search  of  some  months  failed  to  discover  the  map,  and 
other  evidence  not  appearing,  the  book  went  to  press  perforce 
with  this  quite  erroneous  derivation  unchanged.  Three 
months  later  Mr.  Chambers  wrote  to  the  author  that  in  an 
old,  unused  desk  in  the  consulate  he  had  found  the  venerable 
map,  and  on  it  the  more  venerable  province  of  Soumaki. 

It  is  pleasant,  after  so  long  a  time,  to  have  an  opportu- 
nity to  rectify  the  mistake.  The  consciousness  of  it  has  been 
annoying,  but  a  compensatory  measure  of  amusement  has 
been  derived  from  the  unanimity  with  which  the  blunder  has 


PREFACE 

been  adopted  by  later  writers,  some  of  whom  have  not  ac- 
knowledged an  acquaintance  with  this  book  in  their  copious 
bibliographies.  For  fifteen  years  I  have  persistently  "winked 
at  'Omer  down  the  road,"  and  "'Omer"  has  never  once 
"winked  back." 

Upon  publication  of  this  new  edition  of  "Oriental  Rugs," 
the  author  confesses  a  perhaps  pardonable  pride  that  a  work 
done  in  good  faith  has  so  well  withstood  the  test  of  time. 

Shadow  Lake,  Athens,  N.  Y. 
June,  191 5. 


viii 


PREFACE   TO  THE   THIRD    EDITION 

THE  belief,  expressed  when  this  volume  first  appeared, 
that  there  was  need  for  it,  seems  to  have  found  justi- 
fication. Both  the  earlier  editions  were  exhausted 
within  a  few  months  after  publication ;  upon  the  first,  indeed, 
collectors  and  dealers  placed  a  three-fold  value  before  half 
a  year  was  past. 

In  the  preparation  of  the  present  edition  for  the  press,  cir- 
cumstances have  made  necessary  a  change  in  the  illustrative 
scheme.  The  color  plates,  which,  in  the  preceding  issues, 
met  with  such  general  approbation,  had  become  unfit  for 
further  use,  at  least  mechanically  unproductive  of  results  such 
as  proper  illustration  of  the  book  required.  For  the  making 
of  new  plates  it  would  have  been  difficult,  even  if  it  had  been 
desirable,  to  bring  together  all  the  rugs  previously  used.  New 
selections  have  therefore  been  made,  which,  it  is  believed,  will 
serve  even  better  the  broad  purpose  involved.  A  wholly  new 
color  series  is  thus  presented. 

By  permission  of  the  executors  of  the  estate  of  the  late 
Henry  G.  Marquand,  five  rugs  from  the  collection  made  by 
that  gentleman  have  been  taken  as  subjects  for  color 
plates.       Some  of  these  ancient  carpets  are  not  to  be  ex- 


PREFACE 

celled,  either  in  artistic  quality  or  in  rarity,  by  any  fabrics 
to  be  found  in  the  royal  or  public  collections  of  the  Old 
World,  and  that  they  can  be  shown  here  as  examples  of  the 
weaver's  work  in  a  time  when  the  East  was  greatest  in  wealth, 
power  and  artistic  development,  should  be  to  the  reader,  as  it 
assuredly  is  to  the  author,  a  source  of  great  satisfaction.  Ad- 
mirable translation  of  the  inscriptions  in  the  chief  of  the  Mar- 
quand  pieces  has  been  made  by  Dr.  Richard  J.  H.  Gottheil, 
of  Columbia  University. 

Two  pieces,  which  appeared  as  artotypes  in  the  original 
book,  are  now  reproduced  in  color,  a  promotion  of  which  both 
are  eminently  worthy. 

So  far  as  the  book  has  borne  upon  the  rug  industry  there 
is  apparent  no  change  of  condition  sufficient  to  demand 
serious  modification  of  what  has  been  said,  save,  perhaps,  in 
the  case  of  the  Indian  weavings,  in  which,  as  is  plainly  enough 
remarked  in  the  text,  constant  betterment  has  been  visible  from 
the  day  when  American  firms  began  to  control  labor  in  that 
weed-grown  field  of  manufacture. 

The  writer  cannot  conclude  this  small  foreword  without 
expressing  profound  personal  pleasure  that  the  work,  offered 
at  the  first  with  desire  that  it  might  be  a  means  of  uplift  as  well 
as  of  diversion,  has  been  received  with  such  unfailing  favor, 
from  those  best  qualified  to  sit  in  judgment. 

New  York,  October  i,  1902. 


PREFACE 

TMiE  volume  here  presented  goes,  the  first,  into  a  field 
as  empty  as  it  is  extensive.     It  is  the  result  of  several 
years'  study,  and  the  author  hopes  that  it  will  serve 
well  the  purpose  which  prompted  its  creation. 

The  maker  of  books  of  this  sort  is,  after  all,  only  a 
weaver.  The  sum  of  what  he  can  accomplish  is  to  produce 
a  fabric  sound,  thorough  in  workmanship,  grateful  in  design, 
and  true  in  color.  If  it  shall  prove  serviceable,  survive  the 
effects  of  wear  and  time,  and  perform  throughout  its  term  of 
endurance  some  office  of  aesthetic  gratification  as  well,  that 
is  about  all  the  weaver  can  hope  for.  His  first  concern,  it 
would  seem,  is  firm  foundation.  The  warp  and  weft  of  fact 
are  paramount.  These  the  writer  has  sought  assiduously, 
wherever  they  were  to  be  found,  including,  naturally,  the 
mysterious,  contradictory  East.  It  is  only  in  the  Orient, 
where  these  rugs  are  born, —  that  Orient  which  does  not 
know  itself  or  its  neighbor,  scarcely  its  resplendent  past  and 
certainly  not  its  enigmatical  future, — that  one  can  understand 
how  complex,  how  interlaced,  how  confused  and  confusing, 
is  the  subject  which  the  writer  has  here  attempted  to  systema- 


PREFACE 

tize  and  present  in  comprehensive  form.  Only  there  does 
one  see  clearly  why  the  labor  was  not  undertaken  long  ago. 

Out  of  the  years  spent  in  the  work  little  time  has  been 
devoted  to  the  fanciful  or  imaginative  side  of  the  subject. 
Its  poesy  and  romance  have  been  in  a  measure  accepted  as 
corollaries,  assumed  as  among  the  reasons  for  the  book's 
existence,  and,  therefore,  perhaps  neglected  in  the  presenta- 
tion. To  those  who  have  already  come  under  the  spell  of 
the  Eastern  weavings  this  will  not  be  felt  as  a  lack.  What 
of  color  has  been  distributed  through  these  pages  is  of 
more  moment  to  those  who  are  still  groping  in  the  dark 
behef  that  rugs  are — merely  rugs.  If  too  little  of  tingent 
has  been  employed,  it  is  because  the  fabrics  themselves, 
properly  understood,  provide  it  in  plenty  —  far  better  than 
can  any  vocabulary  or  any  thesaurus  of  poetic  imagery.  If 
foundation  shall  here  have  been  laid  for  that  understanding, 
the  work  will  have  been  well  done,  and  the  worker  will  be 
content. 

Acknowledgment  should  be  made  of  contributions  to 
the  book  and  whatever  of  service  it  may  render.  From  Mr. 
A.  C.  Denotovich  was  received  much  light  upon  Eastern 
life  and  manners,  together  with  energetic  cooperation  in  the 
collection  and  classification  of  technical  details.  His  famil- 
iarity with  the  peoples  and  languages  of  the  Orient,  as  well 
as  with  the  various  weavings,  was  of  inestimable  value  dur- 
ing the  author's  sojourn  in  the  countries  where  rugs  are 
made. 

Many  facts  regarding  the  Persian  textiles  were  had  from 

zii 


PREFACE 

Mr.  Hildebrand  Stevens  of  Tabriz,  and,  upon  the  subject  of 
Caucasian  and  Turkoman  fabrics,  from  Mr.  James  C.  Cham- 
bers, United  States  Consul  at  Batoum,  Russia. 

In  making  the  examinations  requisite  to  accuracy  it  has 
been  necessary,  in  this  country,  to  resort  to  large  trade  col- 
lections, where  many  rugs  of  each  variety  could  from  time 
to  time  be  compared.  For  such  privilege  the  author  is  under 
obligation  to  Mr.  L.  B.  Searing  of  W.  &  J.  Sloane ;  Mr.  W. 
Mansell  Daintry  and  Mr.  J.  L.  Parker  of  Arnold,  Constable 
&  Company ;  Mr.  A.  C.  Van  Gaasbeek  of  Van  Gaasbeek 
and  Arkell;  Mr.  F.  B.  Proctor  of  Gulbenkian  &  Company; 
Mr.  A.  H.  Campbell  of  Wild  &  Company ;  Mr.  W.  H.  Banta 
of  the  Oriental  Rug  Company ;  and  Mr.  A.  Blumberg  of 
Tellery  &  Company,  Amritsar,  India. 

One  further  word  of  thanks  must  be  said.  Knowledge 
of  rugs  is  best  gained  by  the  eye.  Rug  owners  who  have 
lent  pieces  for  illustration  have  therefore  added  to  the  volume 
an  element  most  essential  to  its  usefulness. 

With  these  comments  the  book  is  offered,  in  the  desire 
that  it  may  lead  to  a  clearer  knowledge  of  the  subject,  and 
stimulate  a  more  exacting  taste  among  patrons  of  an  art 
industry  which  merits  a  better  fate  than  to  be  perverted  or 
destroyed. 

New  York,  November  15,  1900. 


m 


CONTENTS 

Chapter        I  .       .     Introduction  .       .       .  Page      i 

Chapter      II  .        .       History  ....  Page    ii 

Chapter     III  .    The  Rug-weaving  Peoples     .  Page    21 

Chapter     IV  .       .      Materials ....  Page    33 

Chapter      V  .       .     Dyers  and  Dyes       .       .  Page    42 

Chapter     VI  .        .        Design      ....  Page    56 

Chapter    VII  .        .          Weaving       .        ,        .  Page    80 

Chapter  VIII  .        .   Classification        .        .        ,  Page    98 

Chapter     IX  .        .          Caucasian       .        ,        .  Page  10 1 

Chapter      X  .        .        Turkish    ....  Page  132 

Chapter    XI  .       .        .    Persian        .        .        .  Page  160 

Chapter  XII  .       .      Turkoman         .       .       .  Page  226 


CONTENTS 

Chapter  XIII    . 

.    Khilims 

Page  246 

Chapter  XIV 

Indian    . 

.     Page  252 

Textile  Tables 

Page  268 

Index    . 

.    Page  269 

MAPS 


( 1 )  Asia  Minor  and  the  Caucasian  Region 

(2)  The  Asiatic  Rug-producing  Countries 


At  eft  d 
of  volume 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 

REPRODUCTIONS    OF    RUGS 

COLOR  PLATES  AND  PLANOGRAPHS 


FACING 


Plate         I    Royal  Persian  Rug,  Fifteenth 

Century Color  Plate  iii 

Plate       II    Lesghian  Strip  of  the  Caucasus  Color  Plate  8 

Plate      III     Kazak  Rug Color  Plate  24 

Plate      IV    Baku  Rug Planograph  32 

Plate       V    Bergamo  Rug Color  Plate  40 

Plate      VI    Antique  Silk  Persian  Rug       .  Color  Plate  56 

Plate    VII    Shirvan  Rug Playwgraph  64 

Plate  VIII    Kurdish  Rug       ....  Color  Plate  72 

Plate      IX    Old  Kirman  Rug    ....  Color  Plate  88 

ZV11 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 

FACING 

ate  X    Saruk  Sedjadeh  ....    Playwgraph    96 


ate        XI    Ispahan  Carpet,  Sixteenth 
Century 


ate       XII    Old  Sirab  Rug    . 
ate     XIII    Kulah  Prayer  Rug 
ate      XIV    Laristan  Rug 


ate       XV    Sehna  Khilim 


ate      XVI    Herez  Prayer  Rug    . 


Color  Plate  1 04 

.     Color  Plate  1 20 

Planograph  1 28 

.     Color  Plate  1 36 

Color  Plats  152 

.    Planograph  \  60. 


ate    XVII    Very  Old  Persian  Prayer  Rug    Color  Plate  \6^ 
ate  XVIII    Mina  Khani  Kurdish  Rug  .       Color  Plate  184 


ate     XIX    Feraghan  Sedjadeh 
ate       XX    Shiraz  Rug 


.    Planograph    I Q2 
Color  Plate   200 


ate     XXI  Tekke  Prayer  Rug     .       .       .    Color  Plate  224 

ate    XXII  The  Mosque  Carpet  of  Ardebil    Planograph  244 

ate  XXIII  Yomud  Turkoman  Rug        .       Color  Plate  252 

ate  XXIV  Samarkand  Rug        .       .       .   Planograph  260 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 
PHASES  OF  THE  RUG  INDUSTRY 

PHOTO-ENGRAVINGS 


FAcmo 


Shepherds  of  Northern  Persia i6 

Anatolian  Women  Washing  Wool 48 

Yarn  Workers  at  Home 80 

East  Indian  Factory:  Stretching  the  Warp      .       .       .112 

A  Nomad  Studio 144 

Kurdish  Girls  at  the  Loom 176 

Boy  Weavers  of  Tabriz 212 

A  Rug  Market  in  Iran 236 


DESCRIPTION  OF  PLATES 
Plate  I.    Fifteenth  Century  Royal  Persian 

II. lo  X  6.1 

From  the  Collection  of  the  late  Henry  G.  Marquand 

THIS  is  probably  as  near  perfection  as  the  woolen  carpet  of  the  East 
has  ever  come.  It  was  a  gift  from  the  Emperor  of  the  Persians,  pre- 
sumably to  the  Emperor  of  the  Turks,  for  an  authenticated  record  in 
the  possession  of  its  late  owner  set  forth  that  the  rug  was  among  the  effects  of 
the  Sultan  Abdul  Aziz  of  Turkey  at  the  time  of  his  death.  The  only  pieces 
of  this  extraordinary  character  which  have  passed  out  of  possession  of  the 
Oriental  rulers  and  satraps  who  owned  them  are  now  locked  in  the  treasure 
chambers  of  other  princes,  or  displayed  in  the  public  or  private  galleries  of 
Europe 

In  point  of  design  this  piece  is  closely  kin  to  that  owned  by  Prince  Alexis 
Lobanow-Rostowsky,  a  reproduction  of  which  in  colors  was  published  as  Plate 
XI  in  the  Vienna  Museum's  work  "  Oriental  Carpets." 

Beginning  with  the  matter  of  color,  there  appears  here  in  the  medallions 
of  both  centre  and  border  the  uncommon  shade  of  wine  red  which  is  found  in 
Plate  XI.  The  green,  instead  of  being  used  as  a  ground  color  for  the  border, 
is  applied  to  the  production  of  a  higher  and  infinitely  more  artistic  effect. 
Upon  a  black  central  ground  is  spread,  after  the  fashion  of  the  Sufi  times,  a 
bewildering  but  perfectly  balanced  and  coordinate  display  of  moss-green 
creepers.  The  parent  stems,  which  are  the  framework  of  the  vine  structure, 
are  in  a  deep  shade  of  orange,  outlined  with  more  pronounced  red.  Even  these 
are  slender  and  curved  in  the  most  graceful  manner  ;  but  the  green  branches, 
leaves,  tendrils,  and  even  flower  shapes  which  grow  out  from  them,  are  of  in- 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

credible  delicacy  and  profusion.  Here  and  there,  at  regular  intervals,  and  in 
corresponding  positions  on  both  sides  and  ends  of  the  field,  are  tiny  natural 
flowers,  in  glowing  colors,  similar  to  those  seen  in  such  plenty  in  the  Ardebil 
carpet  (Plate  XXII),  save  that  in  number  and  size  they  are  reduced  to  a  mini- 
mum in  order  not  to  distract  attention  from  the  more  essential  animal  figures 
which  inhabit  the  field. 

In  the  centre  is  a  medallion,  with  what  for  the  sake  of  clearness  may  be 
termed  "escalloped  edges,"  and  depending  from  this,  toward  each  end  of  the 
rug,  though  with  no  pretense  at  actuality,  are  the  temple  lamps.  Medallion 
and  lamp  simulacra  are  both  grounded  in  what  has  been  called  the  Ispahan  red, 
and  upon  this,  in  pink — a  faint,  unobtrusive,  but  withal  beautiful  contrast — 
other  fragile  interwoven  vine  traceries. 

This  serves  merely  as  a  composite  background  for  the  superb  arabesque 
design  worked  in  silver  thread,  the  pile  yarns  apparently  having  been  omitted  to 
allow  the  metal  threads  to  be  attached  directly  to  the  warp,  in  what  closely  re- 
sembles the  Soumak  or  tapestry  stitch.  A  very  similar  device  is  also  found  in 
the  centre  of  the  Ardebil  carpet. 

In  the  innermost  space  of  the  medallion,  symmetrically  grouped,  are  four 
birds,  evidently  of  the  hawk  tribe,  drawn  with  much  skill  and  considerable 
veracity.  Outside  the  medallion,  disposed  amid  the  green  in  the  most  lifelike 
attitudes  of  flight,  pursuit,  combat,  etc.,  are  the  animals  which  play  such 
prominent  parts  in  the  Moslem  allegories,  and  which  were,  in  fact,  endowed 
with  such  large  mythological  significance  by  the  peoples  of  Asia  long  before 
the  rise  of  Mohammedanism.  The  profundity  of  meaning  which  attaches  to 
these  divers  beasts,  and  even  to  their  sundry  attitudes  and  occupations,  is 
hard  to  come  at ;  but  it  is  impossible  to  overlook  the  difference  in  posture  and 
relation  to  one  another  between  the  animals  in  the  Lobanow-Rostowsky  rug 
and  this.  It  is  quite  to  be  credited,  too,  that  these  changed  attitudes  and  re- 
lationships, coupled  with  the  wholly  dissimilar  color  scheme,  are  meant  to 
convey  a  different  meaning,  to  depict  another  state  of  feelings,  another  stage 
in  the  progress  of  the  endless  contest  between  right  and  wrong  that  the  animal 
entities  are  supposed  to  typify. 

Without  endeavoring  to  expound  the  beliefs  of  which  the  animal  king- 
dom provides  visible  symbols,  it  will  suffice  to  repeat  that  the  beasts  of  prey 
generally  represent  light,  victory,  glory,  right;  and  such  as  deer,  gazelles, 
sheep,  goats,  and  the  like,  the  opposite.  In  the  Lobanow-Rostowsky  rug  the 
central  field  is  of  a  lighter  color,  verging  on  yellow,  and  corner  spaces  are  for- 
mally set  off,  occupied  by  the  heron  and  other  birds.  Here  the  corners  are 
abandoned,  and  the  birds  included  in  the  centre  medallion,  the  heron,  usually 

zzil 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

an  emblem  of  long  life,  being  omitted.  It  should  be  noted  that  the  birds  ol 
the  hawk  tribe  have  been  in  all  lands  and  ages  suggestive  of  victory.  The 
coincidences  in  color  and  design  here  are  scarcely  to  be  dismissed.  They  sug- 
gest much.  The  heron  is  left  out ;  the  hawks,  which  occupy  the  corner  space- 
in  the  other  rug,  are  here  transferred  to  the  centre  of  the  carpet.  The  backs 
ground  is  laid  in  funereal  black,  but  traversed  and  overspread  with  the  nascent 
green  which  is  emblematic  of  renewal,  perpetuity,  and  great  spiritual  joy. 

Thus,  without  translating  the  inscriptions  on  the  rug,  which  will  be  re- 
ferred to  later  on,  there  is  a  suggestion  of  death,  coupled  at  the  same  time 
with  repeated  symbols  of  victory,  and  a  suggestion  of  fierce  prosecution  of  the 
endless  struggle  between  right  and  wrong,  light  and  darkness. 

But  the  contest  as  figuratively  set  down  in  this  carpet  seems  to  have  pro- 
gressed to  the  point  of  partial  conquest,  since  the  panther  has  captured  the 
fawn  and  bears  it  down,  whereas  in  the  Lobanow-Rostowsky  rug  the  move- 
ments of  pursuit  and  flight  among  all  the  animals  seem  to  have  just  begun. 
Jackals  still  follow  the  track  of  the  deer;  the  leopard,  a  bold  and  fierce  figure 
crouches  in  his  thicket  of  green,  ready  to  spring  upon  the  he-goats,  warring 
powers  of  evil.  The  huge  red  lion,  Persia's  own  symbolical  beast,  an  element 
not  shown  in  the  other  rug,  roars  on  the  trail  of  the  spotted  stag,  which  turns, 
terrified.  In  deep  thickets,  close  to  the  lairs  of  lions  and  leopards,  the  timid 
rabbit  hides  in  dread,  or  elsewhere  takes  refuge  in  flight. 

Yellow  has  in  all  ages  been  expressive  of  joy  and  victory.  It  is  royally 
displayed  in  the  broad  borders  of  the  rug,  overspread  with  fine  vine  patterns 
in  a  monotone  of  orange.  In  the  border  of  the  Lobanow-Rostowsky  rug  thtre 
are,  all  told,  six  cartouches,  grounded  in  black,  of  the  same  shape  as  those 
found  in  the  Ardebil  carpet,  and  joined  by  escalloped  medallions  in  the  same 
manner.  But  here  there  are  twelve  of  these  cartouches,  instead  of  six,  and 
they  have  a  ground  color  of  the  Ispahan  red,  inlaid  with  pink  vines,  similar  to 
the  medallion  in  the  centre.  Again  the  idea  of  immortality  is  to  the  fore,  as 
that  is  the  ordinary  significance  of  the  cartouche. 

Thus,  from  first  to  last,  in  spite  of  the  black  centre  which  suggests  a 
mourning  carpet,  there  is  the  note  of  triumph,  joy,  and  immortality.  In  view 
of  the  intermittently  hostile  relations  maintained  between  Persia  and  Turkey 
during  the  era  when  the  rug  was  unquestionably  made,  all  that  is  to  be  read 
in  its  design  is  most  vital,  and  seems  expressive  of  some  phase  of  history, 
which  was  then  making  so  vigorously. 

Whatever  temporal  significance  the  carpet  may  have  borne,  as  a  gift  from 
one  monarch  to  another,  the  general  interpretation  outlined  in  the  foregoing 
is  amply  sustained  by  the  inscriptions  in  the  border,  a  most  sympathetic  trans- 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

lation  of  which  has  been  made  by  Dr.  Richard  J.  F.  Gottheil,  of  Columbia 
University.    With  his  permission  it  is  here  given. 

O  Saki,  the  zephyr  of  the  Spring  is  blowing  now  ; 
The  rose  has  become  fresh  and  luxuriant. 

The  drops  of  the  dew  are  like  pearls  in  the  cup  of  the  tulip, 
And  the  tulip  unfolds  its  glorious  flag. 

Narcissus  keeps  its  eye  on  the  stars, 

Like  the  night-watch  throughout  the  night. 

To  sit  alone  in  the  desert  is  not 
Isolation  with  the  company  of  wine. 

When  Saki  passes  the  beautiful  cup  around 
The  rosy  cheeks  of  the  beauties  become 

Violet  for  the  love  of  the  rose, 

And  look  like  the  purple  robe  of  a  horseman. 

The  lines,  though  it  is  difficult  to  locate  them  precisely,  are,  like  nearly 
all  the  inscriptions  found  in  Persian  fabrics  of  whatever  age,  a  quotation  from 
one  of  the  poets  of  that  most  poetical  of  all  eras,  and  perfectly  illustrative  of 
the  high  artistic  impulse  which  centuries  of  war,  pillage,  gradually  waning 
power  and  swiftly  increasing  poverty  and  suffering  have  failed  to  eliminate 
from  the  Persian  nature. — From  the  Author  s  Notes  as  set  down  in  the  Catalogue 
of  the  Marquand  Collection, 


niv 


I 

INTRODUCTION 

"  Although  we  have  every  reason  to  believe  that  the  art  of  carpet  weaving  dates  back  to  the  be- 
ginning of  history,  there  is  probably  no  industry  about  which  we  know  less  bibliographically,  and  the 
paucity  of  reference  is  more  extraordinary  as  it  is  not  confined  to  the  works  of  remote  ages,  but  is  con- 
tinued to  our  own  time.  A  visit  to  any  of  the  leading  carpet  merchants  of  the  principal  cities  of 
Europe  wiimiustrate  and  confirm  this  statement.  Beyond  such  broad  terms  as  'Persian,'  'Turko- 
man,' •  Smyrna,'  they  know  little  of  the  old  carpets  in  their  stocks,  whilst  the  exigencies  of  compe- 
tition force  them  to  conceal  the  names  of  the  localities  of  manufacture  of  modem  carpets,  excepting 
certain  well-known  factories." — Snt  C.  Pttrdon  Clarke,  Formerly  Assistant  Director  of  the  South  Ken- 
sington Museum  and  late  Director  of  the  Metropolitan  Museum,  Ne^v  York  City. 

TH  E  purposes  of  this  book  are :  First,  to  consider  the  deep 
and  enjoyable  meaning  of  Oriental  floor  coverings ;  second, 
to  throw  light  upon  the  life  and  work  of  the  weavers ;  third, 
to  dispel,  so  far  as  lies  within  the  power  of  the  author,  the  obscurity  in 
which  the  subject  has  hitherto  been  involved,  and  place  the  reader  in 
possession  of  such  information  regarding  the  rugs,  both  genuine  and 
spurious,  now  generally  offered  for  sale  in  American  markets,  as  shall, 
in  a  measure  at  least,  deliver  him  from  the  mercy  of  the  decorator, 
the  salesman  and  the  auctioneer  ;  fourth,  to  emphasize  the  superiority 
of  the  old  vegetable  dyes,  the  true  Oriental  coloring ;  finally,  to  give 
an  idea  of  what  constitutes  true  value,  of  the  comparative  worth  of 
the  various  Oriental  weavings,  and  the  means  of  distinguishing  them. 
Prior  to  the  appearance  of  this  book,  no  work  was  obtainable  which 
even  pretended  to  the  performance  of  this  needful  task.'  Publishers 
and  booksellers  who  many  times  in  each  year  were  compelled  to  answer 

>  Reference  to  subsequent  publications  will  be  found  in  the  preface  to  the  present  edition. 

I 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

no,  to  requests  for  such  a  manual,  will  confirm  this  assertion.  In  view 
of  the  enormous  sales  of  rugs — those  actually  made  in  the  Orient,  both 
good  and  bad,  and  those  turned  out  by  millions  from  factories  in  Eng- 
land, Germany,  and  America,  it  seems  incredible  that  there  should  have 
been  nothing  in  form  of  print  to  tell  the  purchaser  aught  of  the  com- 
modities upon  which,  whether  as  collector  or  householder,  he  expended 
large  sums  of  money.  Both  upon  artistic  and  hygienic  grounds  the  use 
of  Oriental  forms  of  carpeting  has  become  widely  prevalent  in  the 
United  States  during  the  last  twenty-five  years ;  and  yet,  for  a  long  time 
after  the  heavy  importation  began,  no  man  might  know  more  of  the 
class  to  which  his  rugs  belonged  than  his  dealer  or  his  purchasing  agent 
chose  to  tell  him. 

The  fact  that  the  importation  of  Eastern  fabrics  on  the  one  hand, 
and  the  manufacture  of  American  imitations  and  substitutes  on  the 
other,  increased  so  amazingly  after  the  early  eighties,  is  of  much  signif- 
icance in  connection  with  the  dearth  of  definite  published  information 
upon  the  subject,  during  so  many  years.  Rug  dealers  have  always 
been  unwilling  to  reveal  the  secrets  or,  in  truth,  any  of  the  real  working 
knowledge  of  their  trade,  and  the  guarding  of  the  mystery  has  been 
distinctly  worth  the  while.^ 

The  only  books  treating  of  the  subject,  with  practical  intent  of  any 
sort,  were  the  splendid  publications  bearing  upon  a  few  ancient  and  al- 
most priceless  pieces  in  the  European  collections,  and  the  advertising 
brochures  of  rug-selling  firms — ^pages  fertile  in  word-painting  and  tempt- 
ing in  construction,  but  sterile  in  practical  information.  These  dealt 
chiefly  in  the  glamour  of  the  theme,  but  they  prospered  in  the  thing 
whereto  they  were  sent. 

The  sentences  of  Sir  Purdon  Clarke,  cited  at  the  beginning  of 

'  Custom  House  statistics  shows  that  while  prior  to  1892  there  were  brought  to  this  country  only 
$300,000  worth  of  Oriental  rugs  annually,  the  value  of  the  importation  has  grown,  even  under  the  most 
deterrent  tariff  schedules,  to  many  millions.  The  manufacture  of  American  machine-made  rugs  has 
increased  thirty-fold  in  the  same  time. 


INTRODUCTION 

this  chapter,  were  written  of  the  European  rug  trade ;  but  they  apply 
as  accurately  to  much  of  that  of  the  United  States.  To  illustrate  : 
The  writer  saw,  among  five  hundred  fabrics  in  a  New  York  establish- 
ment, a  dark,  stout  rug,  perhaps  five  feet  by  ten.  The  befezzed  Ori- 
ental who  was  in  charge  urged  its  purchase. 

"  It  is  a  fine  rug,  that,"  he  said  ;  "  a  very  rare  variety." 

"  Of  what  variety  is  it  ?  " 

"  That,"  he  responded  with  impressive  gravity,  *'  is  a  Lul^." 

"  Ah  !     A  Luld     And  from  what  does  the  name  come  ?  " 

"  From  the  old  city  of  Lul^  in  Persia,"  he  answered  ;  '*  my  father 
was  born  there ;  it  is  a  fine  old  town." 

It  was  plain  he  was  going  on  to  tell  the  threadbare  narrative,  as 
venerable  as  the  city  of  hu\6,  and  as  fictitious,  of  how  this  particular 
bit  of  carpet  was  more  than  a  century  old— was,  in  fact,  an  heirloom 
in  his  family ;  of  how  his  father  had  died  just  after  bringing  it  all  the 
way  to  this  country,  and  it  could  now  be  had  for  the  wretched  sum  of 
fifty  dollars,  because  its  associations  made  him  so  sad. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  name  "  LuM "  is  a  corruption  of  the 
French  roulez^  and  is  given  by  Levantine  dealers,  whose  business  is 
largely  transacted  in  Gallic,  to  a  class  of  carpets  so  thick,  so  tightly 
woven,  that  they  cannot  be  folded,  but  must  of  necessity  be  rolled  up 
for  shipment. 

But  the  part  of  this  anecdote  most  germane,  perhaps,  to  the 
present  discussion  is  that  the  rug  was  not  in  the  least  a  "  LuM,"  but  a 
somewhat  down-at-heel  Kurdish  product  from  the  sand-hill  districts 
of  Mosul. 

The  ignorance  of  this  particular  vendor  happened  to  be  grossly 
patent ;  but  the  incident  illustrated,  as  well,  the  too  common  custom 
of  beguiling  the  buyer  with  egregious  tales,  a  custom  against  which 
the  average  person  is  unarmed.  There  is  probably  no  place  in  the 
world  where  a  man  with  no  leg  of  actual  knowledge  to  stand  on  will 

9 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

prove  so  helpless  as  in  the  midst  of  a  stock  of  a  thousand  or  more 
Oriental  rugs.  The  floors  are  carpeted  with  them,  the  walls  and 
ceilings  are  hung  thick  with  them.  Those  for  sale  are  flashed  before 
his  eyes,  often  without  classification,  and  with  a  rapidity  of  succession 
which  is  deadly,  even  to  expert  judgment.  The  swift  kaleidoscope 
of  diverse  and  unfamiliar  patterns,  coupled  with  an  array  and  arrange- 
ment of  colors  the  like  of  which  is  not  elsewhere,  produces  a  dazed 
condition  akin  to  hypnosis  ;  the  faculty  of  selection  is  benumbed. 

But,  lest  these  observations  be  misapplied,  it  should  be  said 
promptly  that  in  this  maze  there  is  much  to  confuse  the  most  expert. 
There  are  rugs  in  every  trade  collection  which  defy  identification. 
The  elements  to  be  considered  are  many  and  complex,  since  the 
people  engaged  in  rug-making  number  into  millions,  all  with  wills 
and  inspirations  of  their  own. 

Were  it  not  for  this,  conformity  to  local  habits  of  texture  and 
design  would  establish  a  rug's  origin ;  but  both  are  apt,  nowadays,  to 
mislead.  The  weaver  in  a  tribe  whose  fabrics  have  for  centuries 
been  built  upon  a  woollen  warp  and  weft  may  substitute  cotton  or 
goat's-hair  for  one  or  both,  either  from  necessity  or  caprice.  It  is 
conceivable,  too,  that  some  wild  leader  in  the  North  may  on  a  day 
have  revealed  to  him  a  new  and  extraordinary  design.  To  the  thou- 
sands of  his  clan  he  may  issue  an  order  to  abandon  the  old  patterns, 
and  to  fashion  in  their  stead  this  new  figment  of  his  imagination,  to 
his  own  glorification  and  their  profit.  A  year  later  the  bales  will  come 
to  market,  in  place  of  the  customary  products  of  the  tribe,  and  deal- 
ers will  wrangle  mightily  over  them.  Scorn  will  be  visited  upon  him 
who  shall  make  bold  to  say  that  he  knows  these  strange  creations  to 
be — ^let  us  say — Kazaks,  even  though  he  bought  them  from  a  Kazak, 
or,  for  that  matter,  saw  them  wrought. 

The  latitude  for  error  is  boundless,  even  to  the  best  judges,  since 
manufacture  for  market  has  become  the  rule  instead  of  the  exception, 

4 


INTRODUCTION 

and  European  and  American  designs  have  been  sent  to  the  Oriental 
weaver  for  working.  There  is,  perhaps,  no  art  in  which  opinions  as 
to  the  origin  of  products  differ  so  widely,  and  with  reason  upon 
the  side  of  all.  Hence  no  writer,  no  authority  so  called,  no  dealer  in 
rugs  may  lay  claim  to  infallibility.  Patterns,  figures,  designs  are 
largely  discarded  as  a  means  to  identification.  The  designs  are 
jumbled  to  suit  a  market  demand,  and  it  is,  of  course,  impossible  to 
identify  a  nondescript.  Turkish,  Persian  and  Caucasian  elements  are 
wrought  into  one  and  the  same  rug  by  prisoners  in  the  East  Indian 
jails.  Many  designs,  too,  have  come  into  common  use  over  a  wide 
extent  of  territory.  In  a  Persian  bazaar  I  have  heard  two  Hamadanlis 
disputing  for  half  an  hour  as  to  whether  a  certain  pair  of  runners 
came  from  Kara  Geuz  or  Kengawar. 

Nevertheless  the  craft  is  not  wholly  debauched ;  types  are  not 
yet  wholly  annihilated.  It  is  with  types  that  this  book  essays  to  deal, 
and  with  this  understanding  the  textile  tables  and  specific  descrip- 
tions  of  various  rugs  are  presented.  They  are  formulated  from  the 
results  of  personal  experience  in  the  manufacture,  collection,  buying 
and  selling  of  rugs,  and  upon  the  author's  own  studious  examination, 
both  in  America  and  in  the  Orient,  of  many  specimens  of  each  class 
discussed. 

The  divisions  are  more  minute  than  those  ordinarily  made  by 
rug  sellers.  The  significance  of  this  is  made  plain  in  the  quoted 
remark  lof  Sir  Purdon  Clarke.  The  names  here  employed  are  those 
in  vogue  among  the  rug  traders  of  Smyrna  and  Constantinople 
Some  are  provincial ;  some  indicate  a  town,  oftentimes  merely  the 
market-place;  some,  a  tribe  ;  some  have  no  discoverable  origin.  Others 
still  are  inventions  of  recent  time,  devised  solely  to  mark  a  quality. 
Many  of  them  all  are  wholly  misleading,  and  not  understood  in  the 
districts  where  the  carpets  are  made.  It  seems  best,  however,  to  adhere 
to  them  rather  than  to  bring  about  confusion  greater  than  that  which 

s 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

already  exists.  There  are  doubtless  many  names,  adopted  for  purposes 
of  trade,  which  are  not  to  be  found  here.  Hundreds  of  new  and  sound- 
ing titles  may  be  advanced,  so  long  as  carpet  firms  invent  novelties, 
or  shepherd  women  weave  upon  their  mountains,  each  as  she  wills, 
putting  into  their  fabrics  the  glory  of  the  sunset,  the  bend  of  the 
river  where  their  flocks  water,  or  rude  depictions  of  the  sheep  grazing 
about  the  foothills.'  But  it  is  unquestionably  true,  as  an  English 
authority  has  said,  that  "  the  place  of  production  can,  within  a  wide 
area,  be  ascertained  with  sufficient  certainty." 

Something  must  here  be  said  concerning  the  deterioration  in 
Oriental  fabrics,  to  which  inferential  allusion  has  already  been  made. 
In  some  districts  the  decadence  in  the  present  product,  from  the  old 
standards  of  design,  color  and  execution,  is  pitiful.  The  weavers 
seem  to  have  learned  from  the  West  the  demoralizing  lesson  of  haste, 
and  have  developed,  to  a  sad  degree^  the  attendant  vice  of  careless- 
ness. At  the  same  rate  of  retrogression  that  has  marked  the  last 
two  decades,  the  next  generation  will,  perforce,  have  lost  the  magic 
of  its  forbears,  and  the  fabrics  which  have  delighted  and  amazed  the 


'  For  example,  rugs,  chiefly  of  Persian  manufacture,  are  sold  under  the  names  Kinari,  Sarpuz, 
and  Sarandaz.  These  titles  are  of  no  significance  as  denoting  any  particular  locality  of  manufacture. 
They  are  applied  arbitrarily  to  rugs  of  a  certain  shape  or  quality.  Kinari  is  the  Persian  name  for 
the  long  strip  carpets,  the  makatlik,  or  "runners,"  which  form  the  sides  of  the  triclinium  ;  Sarandaz 
denotes  the  wider  strip  which  goes  across  the  head  of  the  room,  and  upon  which  the  lord  of  the  house 
sits.  Sarpuz,  when  reduced  to  English  in  like  manner,  means  simply  a  covering.  The  name  may  be 
applied  to  any  soft,  light  rug  adapted  to  the  uses  of  domestic  comfort. 

An  anecdote  illustrative  of  the  way  in  which  new  rug  names]  are  secured  is  told  by  Mr.  W.  H. 
Banta.  It  relates  to  the  Bandhor  rugs,  which  are  known  far  and  wide  throughout  this  country  as  a 
heavy  and  rather  low-priced  quality  of  Asia  Minor  carpets.  *'  Many  years  ago,"  he  said,  "there  was 
ordered  by  a  New  York  firm  a  line  of  stout  carpets  on  the  model  of  the  modem  Ghiordes,  but  with 
some  variations  in  design.  When  the  first  one  arrived  a  gentleman  from  Boston  saw  it,  liked  it,  and 
offered  right  away  to  buy  it.  A  price  was  named,  double  what  we  had  really  intended  to  sell  it  at,  but 
he  didn't  balk.  When  he  asked  the  name  of  the  fabric  we  had  no  name  to  give  him,  so  two  or  three 
of  us  got  out  the  map  of  the  East,  and  each  selected  a  name.  These,  written  on  slips  of  paper,  were 
placed  in  a  hat,  and  I  put  in  my  hand  and  drew  out  the  paper  bearing  the  word  Bandhor.  So  we 
called  the  rugs  Bandhor,  and  they  have  been  so  known  ever  since. 

6 


INTRODUCTION 

world  will  have  become  mere  matters  of  history.  The  patterns  are 
being  Occidentalized,  if  the  expression  is  permissible ;  the  colors  are 
already,  to  a  great  extent,  the  product  of  the  laboratory ;  the  charac- 
teristic beauty  and  strength  of  the  Eastern  rugs  are  even  now  far  on 
the  way  to  extinction.'  All  the  causes  contributory  to  this  condi- 
tion can  scarcely  be  enumerated,  and  it  would  be  vain  to  enter  upon 
arraignment  of  the  many  classes  who  lend  their  share  of  aid  toward 
it.  The  question  is  essentially  an  economic  one.  There  is  involved 
the  acquisitiveness  of  the  several  dealers  through  whose  hands  the 
fabrics  pass,  and  even  the  weaver  himself  is  not  exempt  from  dis- 
credit, since  he  yields  to  the  temptation  to  produce  much,  though  of 
poorer  quality,  that  his  gains  may  be  greater.  Unless  the  human 
fames  auri  can  be  allayed,  the  evil  will  continue. 

But  aside  from  this  phase,  it  must  be  seen  that  at  the  root  of  the 
matter  lies  the  demand  of  the  West  for  these  fabrics,  a  demand  born 
of  the  growing  artistic  tendency — or,  possibly,  the  '*  Oriental  fad  " — 
of  Western  peoples.  The  centre  of  population  changes.  The  races 
left  in  the  Orient,  mere  remnants  of  the  millions  who  swarmed  there 
of  old,  are  unequal,  with  their  slow  methods,  to  the  task  of  carpeting 
the  homes  of  the  teeming  West  and  yet  maintaining  the  quality  which 
prevailed  when  there  was  no  demand  save  that  created  by  their  own 
necessities.' 

There  are  industrious  sales-gentlemen  who  will  stoutly  and  un- 
blushingly  deny  the  deterioration.     They  will  contend,  whether  sin- 


*  "  Possibly  there  may  be  a  resurrection  of  the  Persian  art,  but  in  the  meantime  aniline  dyes, 
tawdry  European  imitations  and  western  models,  without  either  grace  or  originality,  arc'  doing  their 
best  to  deprave  it." — Mrs.  Bishop:  "Journeys  in  Persia  and  Kurdistan." 

■  The  popularity  of  the  Oriental  hand-made  fabric  has,  it  is  now  manifest,  been  the  chief  fac- 
tor in  destroying  the  art  as  it  was  practised  in  the  olden' time.  The  American  demand,  particularly 
for  large  sizes,  became  constantly  greater  and  more  insistent.  The  inevitable  result  was  a  more 
thorough  organization  of  the  industry,  and  finally  a  very  large  measure  of  actual  centralization.  This 
soimded  the  doom  of  individual  inspiration. 

7 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

cerely  or  not,  that  innovations  have  been  solely  in  the  nature  of  prac- 
tical improvement.  They  may  even  defend  the  substitution  of  aniline 
dyes  for  the  old  vegetable  mordant  dyes  of  the  East,  upon  the  grounds 
of  "facility,"  "brilliancy"  and  "scope."  But  such  will  hardly  find 
solace  or  corroboration  in  a  comparison  of  the  antique  and  modern 
Feraghans,  or  make  bold  to  place  the  old-time  Ghiordes  beside  much 
of  the  rubbish  turned  out  to-day  from  that  ancient  home  of  fine  work- 
manship. 

As  to  the  precise  meaning  of  the  word  "  antique,"  as  applied  to 
Eastern  carpetings,  interpretations  differ.  For  the  purpose  of  the 
collector,  an  "  antique "  has  been  defined  as  a  fabric  which  has  not 
less  than  fifty  years  of  actual  age.  But  the  number  of  these 
arriving  in  this  country  constitutes  such  an  infinitesimal  proportion 
of  the  entire  importation  of  fabrics  offered  for  sale  by  that  name,  and 
artificial  methods  are  so  efficacious  in  producing  the  appearance  of 
age,  that  rug  dealers,  for  business  purposes,  have  come  to  count  as 
"  antiques "  all  fabrics  which,  in  respect  of  dyes,  materials,  patterns 
and  texture,  are  constructed  in  anything  like  similarity  and  equality 
to  the  rugs  of  half  a  century  back. 

The  almost  fabulous  demand  which  has  grown  up  in  the  last 
twenty-five  years  has  in  many  lines  cleared  the  market  of  antiques, 
and  given  rise  to  a  reckless  outpour  of  inferior  stuff,  such  as  can  be 
thrown  together  in  a  minimum  of  time  and  sold  for  the  lowest  price. 
Working  overtime,  and  with  unlimited  employment  in  view,  the  Ori- 
ental, happy  that  there  has  arisen  such  a  call  for  his  handiwork,  does 
not  dream  how  near  is  the  "demise"  of  the  goose  which  has  laid  him 
this  golden  egg. 

But  although  the  weaver's  art  has,  under  stress  of  temptation,  be- 
come in  a  great  measure  an  industry,  pure  and  simple,  it  should  not  be 
judged  by  any  extreme  example.  Wisdom  seems  not  to  have  waned 
so  easily  in  all  parts  of  the  Orient,  for  there  are  rug-producing  neigh- 

8 


[k^Wiy^^a    .TI  Sfi^Tl 


-bs?.  ariJniof         "  '         '  '"'  '')f  do'idyfjiii  , zup.ro 

bn£  eiftIT  n;  ^  .  ,^    .  TOyciq  kha  riabfii 

srfi  gnolfi  Us  b^iaJitiioe  »83clhJ  nfi'trf^izaJ  nrfi  oJ  baJudhiJfi  dib  briB  Jo«^d£siI3 
-ubD  1o  istJal  io'nlz  oAi  vf  ^fitmc  /ori?.  yariT    .o^tiBi  odi  }o  jglliri-jool 

3i3ri  gui  ajii  9>ffl  Jud  ,j2fi3  ipn  adJ  lo  s^orfJ  njsrfj  ngieai  nfiiaBD 

-£mo  lonl/n  rir  btiB  ,n  //o  liorf?  lo  tiBq  ni  oi/aiuq  oJ  fnja?.  .hoawboiqaT 

bnfi  smoeoloriv/  ,jrf^,  lirf^saJ  neiaia^  ^rii  bisy/ci  nr.-jl  noiiBJnam 

.lofpDlo  ifiioq  ni  oidmh^b  ieom  RgmbnuoTiua  nifilii53  ni  bns  aldAoDiviae 


;  of  prac 


much 
i  out  to-da  work- 

pplied  to 
Plate  II.    Lesghian  Strip  of  the  Caucasus  '  e 

II. 2  X  3. II  ;. 

Loaned  by  Mr.  F.  B.  Proctor  th<>«#» 

A  considerable  number  of  rugs  proceed  from  the  middle  section  of  the  Cau- 
casus, in  i^hich  yellow  and  blue  prevail  almost  as  largely  as  they  do  in  the  sed- 
jadeh  and  prayer  carpets  of  Kulah.  They  are  marketed  chiefly  in  Tiflis  and 
Elizabetpol,  and  are  attributed  to  the  Lesghian  tribes,  scattered  all  along  the 
foot-hills  of  the  range.  They  show  less  of  conformity  to  the  strict  letter  of  Cau- 
casian 4esign  than  those  of  the  sections  farther  East,  but  like  the  rug  here 
reproduced,  seem  to  pursue  in  part  a  symbolism  of  their  own,  and  in  minor  orna- 
mentation lean  toward  the  Persian  teaching.  They  are  bright,  wholesome  and 
serviceable  and  in  certain  surroundings  most  desirable  in  point  of  color. 


\n  be 

r>nce. 


< 

< 
it 

i 

4C 


INTRODUCTION 

borhoods  where  the  standards  of  design  and  workmanship  have  been 
more  scrupulously  upheld.  Whether,  in  adhering  to  ancient  methods 
the  weavers  of  these  parts  had  foreknowledge  of  the  penalty  which 
waits  upon  retrogradation,  may  not  be  clear,  but  the  logic  of  the  mat- 
ter is  apparent  in  the  prestige  and  the  compensation  which  in  every 
rug  market  wait  upon  this  staunch  devotion  to  classic  models. 

But  even  the  best  of  modern  products  are  forced  to  pay  tribute 
to  the  infatuation  of  the  West  for  what  is  or  seems  to  be  of  great  age. 
The  astute  vendors  of  the  East,  and  undoubtedly  some  in  this  coun- 
try, take  shrewd  advantage  of  every  blemish  in  a  rug,  and  employ 
unnumbered  tricks  of  chemical  and  other  treatment,  to  add  the  ap- 
pearance of  age,  and  consequent  value,  to  fabrics  which  left  the 
looms  perhaps  not  more  than  a  year  ago.  It  may  be  that  your 
"antique,"  which  you  brought  home  yesterday  in  all  the  proud  joy  of 
ownership,  has  within  its  brief  twelve-month  of  existence  been  made 
to  undergo  many  processes.  It  may  have  been  treated  with  lemon 
juice  and  oxalic  acid,  for  example,  to  change  its  flaring  reds  into  old 
shades,  or  with  coffee  to  give  it  the  yellow  of  years.  Its  lustre  may 
be  born  of  glycerine.  It  may  have  been  singed  with  hot  irons. 
Its  hues  have  perhaps  been  dulled  by  smoke.  It  may  have  been 
buried  in  the  ground  and  then  renovated,  sand-papered  back  and  front 
to  give  the  thinness  of  old  age,  and  for  the  sheer  decrepitude  of  an 
almost  sacred  and  invaluable  antiquity,  hammered  and  combed  at  the 
sides  and  ends,  and  on  spots  over  its  surface.  There  is  no  end  to 
these  devices,  and  not  much  cure  for  them. 

On  the  whole,  it  is  to  be  well  considered  whether,  with  these 
facts  in  view,  the  wisest  course  in  selecting  Oriental  rugs,  for  all  save 
the  most  opulent  buyers — the  "collectors" — is  not  to  abandon  the 
rather  bootless  search  for  genuine  antiques,  and  purchase  fabrics  con- 
fessedly new,  but  which  conform  minutely  to  the  highest  standards; 
which  have  the  requisite  number  of  knots  to  the  square  inch,  the  col- 

9 


ORIENTALRUGS 

ors  of  which  will  not  run  when  attacked  by  water,  the  patterns  of 
which  are  purely  the  patterns  of  the  East — what  may,  to  identify 
them,  be  caM^d  J>rach'c  a  I  antiques. 

The  money  paid  for  artificial  age  would  secure  all  these  merits  in 
a  new  fabric;  the  amount  of  service  and  genuine  comfort  derived 
would  prove  greater  in  the  end,  and  as  heirlooms — for  they  will  out- 
live the  buyer  by  generations — they  would  be  dearer  than  if  they  had 
come  into  the  family  with  what  may  accurately  be  called  a  "  doubtful 
past." 

In  any  event  it  is  best  to  recognize,  first  as  well  as  last,  the  indis- 
putable fact,  that  you  cannot  now  secure  desirable  old  Oriental  rugs 
for  a  song.  Even  though  they  be  sold  in  the  Orient  at  what  we  should 
consider  most  reasonable  prices,  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the  duty 
upon  them  is  fifty  per  cent,  ad  valorem.  When  transportation,  the  or- 
dinary expenses  of  business,  profits  of  jobbers,  et  cetera,  are  counted,  the 
foreign  fabric  necessarily  calls  for  a  substantial  price ;  and  it  is  safe  to 
rest  assured,  generally,  that  who  sells  an  Oriental  rug  very  cheap,  is 
selliog  a  very  cheap  Oriental  rug  as  well. 


II 

HISTORY 

CARPET,  as  it  has  long  been  understood,  is  a  narrow  word. 
It  has  meant,  at  most,  merely  a  floor-covering.  It  is  only 
in  recent  years  that  the  Oriental  fabric,  lying  loose  upon 
the  floor,  has  been  designated  by  any  other  name  than  rug,  no  matter 
what  its  dimensions,  nor  how  nearly  it  covered  the  entire  floor  space 
of  the  apartment.  In  our  terminology  nails  have  always  been  re- 
quired to  make  a  carpet,  even  of  a  rug.  Our  multiplication  of  pieces 
of  furniture  has  so  subordinated  the  carpet  that  it  has  had  merely  the 
value  of  background. 

In  Eastern  life  this  is  not  so.  The  carpetings,  in  strictly  Orien- 
tal furnishing,  have  always  constituted  well  nigh  the  whole  equipment 
and  adornment  of  the  apartment.  They  cover  the  floor,  they  cover 
the  divans,  which,  save  for  small  inlaid  octagonal  tables,  are  about 
the  only  furniture  ;  they  take  the  place  of  ceiling  and  wall  paper,  and 
their  picturings  have  always  been  employed  to  do  what  paintings, 
engravings  and  etchings  do  upon  our  Western  walls. 

The  reason  for  the  last-named  utilization  of  the  carpet  may  be 
found,  in  part  at  least,  in  the  embargo  which  the  Mohammedan  canons 
lay  upon  the  use  of  pigments,  and  further,  in  the  even  more  stringent 
rules  of  the  orthodox  portion  of  Islam,  which  forbid,  as  well,  all  de- 

II 


n/ 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

piction  in  art  of  the  human  figure,  or  even  of  birds  and  beasts.  Thus 
the  art  of  the  East  has  been  largely  confined  to  textile  fabrics,  and 
except  in  Persia  and  parts  of  Central  Asia,  where  the  rigorous  Sun- 
nite  doctrine  does  not  maintain,  its  expression  has  not  gone  outside 
the  realm  of  conventional  and  cabalistic  designs.  The  Persians,  be- 
longing to  the  Shiite  sect  of  Mohammedans — the  "  loose  construction- 
ists"— accepted  with  readiness  the  grotesque  animal  figures  of  the 
Chinese — many  of  them,  like  the  deer,  leopard*  and  dragon,  having 
their  own  religious  significance,  and  even  carried  to  an  advanced  degree 
of  perfection  the  representation  of  human  figures  and  the  sprites  of 
their  mythology.*  But  for  the  most  part  the  Mussulman  populations 
have  heeded  the  prohibition,  and  restricted  themselves  to  such  results 
in  depiction  as  are  vouchsafed  by  wool  and  silk.  It  is  small  wonder, 
then,  that  the  fabrics  are  rich  and  varied.  They  embody,  perforce, 
all  that  the  Oriental  knows  of  color,  form,  symmetry,  the  exaltation 
of  faith  and  the  delight  of  living. 


'  The  figures  of  the  lion  and  deer,  or  leopard  and  deer,  seen  so  often  in  conjunction  in  the  cen- 
tral fields  of  Persian  rugs,  are  of  very  ancient  origin.  Scholars'  opinions  vary  as  to  their  precise  deri- 
vation ;  while  they  are  believed  to  have  been  brought  from  China,  in  the  ancient  religion  of  which 
similar  portrayals  had  a  definite  significance,  kindred  shapes  are,  nevertheless,  found  in  gigantic  relief 
upon  stone  porticos  in  the  ruins  of  Persepolis,  so  that  their  importation  from  China,  if  that  be  indeed 
their  birth-place,  and  their  inweaving  into  the  symbolism  of  the  old  Persians,  must  have  been  accomp- 
lished at  a  very  remote  period.  Aside  from  all  doubts  as  to  their  origin,  it  is  generally  agreed  among 
Orientalists  that  the  feline  shape  represents  daylight,  and  that  of  the  deer,  or  antelope,  or  whatever 
species  of  the  family  it  may  be,  darkness.  Invariably,  the  lion  preys  upon  the  deer,  and,  by  a  figurative 
interpretation,  has  come  to  be  regarded  in  this  connection  as  symbolic  of  victory  or  glory.  It  is  perhaps 
imaginative,  but,  for  all  that,  not  wholly  without  reason,  to  believe  that  here,  in  some  sort,  is  the 
foundation  of  the  story  that — 

"  The  lion  and  the  unicorn  were  fighting  for  the  crown, 
The  lion  chased  the  unicorn  all  about  the  town." 

This  derivation  is  not  unlikely,  since  in  some  of  the  ancient  depictions  the  vanquished  animal  is  plainly 
seen  to  have  the  single  horn  growing  from  its  forehead. 

*  "  The  religion  of  the  Prophet  forbade  any  representation  of  the  human  figure.  This  prohibi- 
tion does  not  appear  to  have  been  long  observed,  for  we  find  that  the  walls  of  palaces  and  of  the 
houses  of  the  rich  were  covered  with  paintings.  There  was  a  school  of  painting  at  Basra  [Bassorab, 
on  the  Shat-el-Arab],  and  a  historian  gives  us  the  names  of  two  painters  of  high  celebrity  in  their 
art." — Professor  Stanislas  Guyard. 

la 


HISTORY 

The  custom,  prevalent  in  the  Orient,  of  removing  the  shoes  be- 
fore entering  the  doorway  of  a  mosque  or  the  habitation  of  a  fellow- 
being,  warrants  the  construction  of  fine  carpets,  in  delicate  tints  and 
of  dainty  texture,  for  domestic  use  as  well  as  for  places  of  worship. 
But  it  is  by  no  means  certain  that  the  first  use  of  these  was  to  be  trod 
upon.  It  would  seem,  rather,  that  they  were,  in  the  beginning,  em- 
ployed as  hangings. 

How  remote  the  time  in  which  these  strange  textile  devices  were 
born  is  a  matter  for  archaeology  to  determine.  In  a  dozen  different 
families  of  Oriental  rugs  are  to  be  found  the  patterns  of  the  stone 
carvings  on  the  ancient  Maya  temples  in  Yucatan,  which,  if  students 
of  Mexican  antiquities  are  to  be  believed,  were  built  when  Egypt  was 
a  wilderness,  and  abandoned  centuries  before  Confucius.  These 
Mayas  were  the  people  whose  missionaries,  it  is  averred,  crossed  the 
Pacific  to  settle  in  the  Deccan,  and  journeying  over  Asia  taught  to 
infant  Egypt  the  fundament  of  the  Mysteries,  and  handed  down  to 
Judaism  and  Christianity,  for  future  use,  the  story  of  Cain  and  Abel, 
and  even  the  older  one  of  the  tempted  Eve. 

There  is  needed  no  effort  of  imagination  to  believe  that  in  the 
gay  carpets  of  the  East  there  lies  written,  though  now  probably  un- 
translatable, the  record  of  the  universal  mysticism.  That  they  were 
made  in  prehistoric  ages,  and  that  their  first  value  was  religious  or 
regal,  rather  than  utilitarian,  seems  beyond  doubt.  Even  in  its 
rudest  forms  the  art  was  sumptuary.  It  is  coeval  with  the  first  up- 
lifting of  one  man  above  his  fellows,  whether  the  exaltation  was  reli- 
gious, pecuniary,  or  physical. 

It  is  not  the  purpose  here  to  transcribe  the  historical  record  of 
this  branch  of  the  textile  art,  save  in  so  far  as  shall  serve  to  suggest 
forcibly  the  deep  significance  of  Oriental  fabrics,  as  embodying  the 
natural  religions  which  preceded  all  known  or  recorded  formulae,  the 
kinship  of  races  now  accounted  alien  to  one  another,  and  the  trend 

13 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

and  tenor  of  Eastern  life,  which  through  centuries  of  invasion,  tur- 
moil, and  wandering  to  and  fro,  has  retained  the  forms  which  were 
taught  it  in  the  morning  of  the  world. 

The  skeptical — necessarily  a  synonym  for  practical — will  be- 
grudge to  rugs  this  measure  of  dignity  or  import.  It  is  not,  how- 
ever, claimed  that  these  carpets  relate  in  legible  form  the  specific  oc- 
currences of  history.  They  do  not  specify.  They  are  not  even 
cuneiforms.  They  array  no  names,  no  dates.  They  do,  nevertheless, 
when  studied  collaterally,  tell  an  edifying  story  of  a  widespread  and 
almost  universal  faith  whose  forms  are  lost,  and  of  peoples  of  which,  in 
this  age  of  atomics,  there  remains  little  save  the  names.  It  is  the  in- 
dubitable identification  of  modern  rug  designs  with  the  solemn  and 
mysterious  emblems  of  the  "unrecorded  time,"  the  proven  fact  that 
the  archaic  systems  of  weaving  were  the  same  as  those  in  vogue  in 
the  East  to-day,  that  compels  the  thoughtful  modern,  of  whatever 
race,  to  view  these  fabrics,  as  Sir  George  Birdwood  says,  as  "  works 
of  art,  and  not  manufacturers'  piece  goods  produced  at  competition 
prices."* 

There  is  thus  far,  it  seems,  no  means  of  establishing,  positively, 
an  origin  for  these  fabrics  more  ancient  than  the  Egyptian.  Certainty 
halts  there,  perforce,  until  some  new  light  shall  rise  to  reveal  clearly 
an  older  civilization  than  that  in  the  valley  of  the  Nile.  But  there 
the  weaver,  laboriously,  as  he  does  to-day,  wove  his  threads  into  the 
same  mystical,  universal  shapes  which  come  now  in  the  rugs  consigned 
from  Smyrna  and  Stamboul.  And  yet,  Heliopolis  is  a  straggling 
ruin.     Grass  overgrows  the  foundations  of  the  temples  in  which  great 

'  This  is  in  striking  accord  with  the  utterance  of  Adelbert  de  Beaumont,  in  his  essay,  "  Les 
Arts  Decoratifs  en  Orient  et  en  France."  He  says  :  "  Cachemires  de  I'lnde,  bijoux  de  Lahore,  ivoires 
et  porcelaines  de  Chine  et  Ispahan,  gazes  et  mousselines  d'Agra,  armes  et  tapis  de  Kurdistan,  etc.,  sont 
tellement  superieurs  a  ses  imitations  de  fabrications  modernes,  par  la  qualitede  lamatiire,  par  la  beaute 
desdessins,  I'harmoniedes  couleurs,  lasolidite,  lebonmarche,  que  tout  homme  eclaire  et  de  bonne  foi  ne 
saurait  un  seul  instant  hesiter  dans  ses  preferences,  qu'il  se  place  au  point  de  vue  de  I'art  ou  i  celui  de 
rindustrie." 

«4 


HISTORY 

tapestries  once  hung  before  the  shrines  of  the  Phoenix  and  the  sacred 
Mneh.  The  glowing  fabrics  which  made  beautiful  the  altars  of  Isis 
and  Osiris  are  dust,  and  in  Cairo  shrewd  traders  charge  the  Giaour 
travellers  from  Europe  and  the  Americas  ten  prices  for  sedjadeh 
shipped  over  from  Constantinople  or  Smyrna  for  the  purpose,  or  for 
the  scattering  prayer-rugs  and  grave-cloths  which  come  out  from  the 
districts  beyond  the  desert.  The  Levantine  merchants,  if  you  ask 
them  about  the  rugs  from  Damascus  or  Baghdad,  will  shrug  th^ir 
shoulders  and  shake  their  heads  in  negation ; '  but  many  skilful 
hands  once  labored  at  the  looms  in  these  cities,  and  the  fabrics  of 
Thebes,  Tyre,  Memphis,  and  Sidon  were  doubtless  worth  at  one  time 
almost  their  weight  in  gold. 

Assyria  and  Chaldea  stand  next  to  Egypt  as  ancient  homes  of 
carpet-making,  and  though  no  specimens  of  the  early  Assyrian  re- 
main, the  character  of  the  designs  is  known  from  the  wall  reliefs 
found  at  Nineveh,  which  now  have  place  in  the  British  Museum. 
Professor  J.  H.  Middleton,  of  Cambridge,  says  of  these:  "The 
stuffs  worn  by  Asur-Banipal  are  most  elaborate  in  design,  being 
covered  with  delicate  geometrical  patterns  and  diapers,  with  borders 
of  lotus  and  other  flowers,  treated  with  decorative  skill.  A  large 
marble  slab  from  the  same  palace  is  covered  with  an  elaborate  textile 
pattern  in  low  relief,  and  is  evidently  a  faithful  copy  of  an  Assyrian 
carpet.  Still  more  magnificent  stuffs  are  represented  as  being  worn 
by  Assyrian  captives,  on  the  enamelled  wall  tiles  from  Rameses  II.'s 
palace  (fourteenth  century  B.  C.)  at  Tel  el  Yahudiyah.   The  woven 


<  There  are  made,  in  parts  of  the  Baghdad  district,  and  shipped  from  Baghdad,  coarse  nomad 
rugs  following  the  lower  order  of  Iran  and  Mosul  designs,  but  Baghdad  is  not  recognized  as  a  home  of 
carpet  manufacture  by  the  most  of  Levantine  dealers.  That  its  industry  should  have  so  fallen  away  is 
incomprehensible,  since  even  down  into  the  first  quarter  of  the  present  century  carpets  were  produced 
here  which  took  rank  with  the  best  of  Persian  fabrics.  They  were,  it  is  true,  marked  by  many  of  the 
Chinese  elements,  an  inevitable  consequence  of  the  long  period  of  Mongol  occupation.  The  textile 
product  of  the  district  nowadays  takes  principally  the  form  of  djijims  or  portieres,  and  other  embroi* 
dery,  for  which  materials  are  abundant  in  the  outlying  country. 

IS 


# 


ORIENTALRUGS 

patterns  are  most  minutely  reproduced  in  their  different  columns,  and 
the  design,  special  to  Assyria,  of  the  sacred  tree  between  two  guar- 
dian beasts,  is  clearly  represented,  though  on  the  most  minute  scale." 

This  paragraph  contains  much  in  substantiation  of  the  claim  that 
modern  Oriental  carpets  are  identical  with  the  earliest  fabrics  pro- 
duced in  Egypt,  for  the  "  delicate  geometrical  patterns  and  diapers, 
with  borders  of  lotus  and  other  flowers,"  will  be  found  reproduced 
with  scarcely  any  modification  in  many  Eastern  rugs  to-day.  And 
touching  the  marble  slab  here  referred  to  as  "  a  faithful  copy  of  an 
Assyrian  carpet,"  it  is  agreed  that  many  of  the  Babylonian  designs 
are  found  in  their  completeness  in  the  modern  Persian  pieces.  "  The 
preeminence  of  the  ancient  Babylonian  weavers,"  says  another  writer, 
"  does  not  appear  ever  to  have  been  lost  by  their  successors,  and  at 
the  present  time  the  carpets  of  Persia  are  as  much  prized  and  as 
eagerly  sought  after  by  European  nations  as  they  were  when  ancient 
Babylon  was  in  its  glory." 

As  for  the  "  design,  special  to  Assyria,  of  the  sacred  tree  be- 
tween two  guardian  beasts,"  referred  to  by  Professor  Middleton,  it 
was  found  by  the  writer  in  New  York  City,  no  longer  ago  than 
December,  1899,  in  a  Persian  silk  rug  of  beautiful  workmanship  and 
high  value.  The  Armenian  dealer  laughed  at  it  as  uncouth,  and  said 
he  had  no  idea  of  its  meaning.  Yet  it  linked  the  immediate  present 
with  the  life  of  oldest  Assyria,  across  the  abyss  of  more  than  thirty 
centuries.  Truly,  "  Mizraim  cures  wounds,  and  Pharaoh  is  sold  for 
balsams." 

Pliny  speaks  in  highest  praise  of  the  skill  of  these  Assyrians  in 
weaving,  wonders  at  their  artistic  blending  of  colors,  and  records  the 
fact  that  all  this  sort  of  work  had  come,  long  before  his  era,  to  bear 
the  name  of  "Babylonica  peristromata  " — the  seal  of  its  most  perfect 
masters.  To  this  day,  among  the  peoples  of  the  Levant,  that  old 
Greek  name  lingers,  and  the  traders  of  the  Mediterranean  fully  be- 

16 


172 

a; 

Ui 

a 

X 
H 
ai 
O 
Z 

o 

Q 
oi 
U 

a 

U 


HISTORY 

lieve  that  the  whole  art  of  rug-weaving  had  its  earliest  beginning,  as 
well  as  its  greatest  splendor,  in  Babylonia  and  Chaldea. 

Of  the  PhcEnician  and  archaic  Grecian  textile  patterns  the  only 
knowledge  to  be  had  is  in  the  designs  of  the  pottery,  which  show  in 
detail  a  multitude  of  patterns,  both  separate  and  consecutive,  which 
appear  in  the  rugs  of  Asia  Minor  and  the  Trans-Caucasus  to-day, 
in  perfect  integrity.  Professor  Middleton  refers  to  them  in  this  wise: 
"  Simple  combinations  of  lines,  arranged  in  designs  obviously  sug- 
gested by  the  matting  or  textile  fabrics."  He  says  further  :  "  Some 
of  the  designs  of  this  class  seem  common  to  all  races  of  men  in  an 
elementary  stage  of  progress,  and  occur  on  the  earliest  known  pot- 
tery, that  of  the  Neolithic  Age." 

As  time  went  on,  this  primitive  ornamentation  grew  more  pro- 
fuse. Greece  and  her  neighbors  borrowed  the  floral-geometrical  pat- 
terns, chiefly  the  lotus  and  attendant  shapes,  from  Egypt  and 
Assyria,  and  made  them  part  of  their  system  of  ornamentation,  at  the 
richest  period  of  Greek  predominance.  This  loan,  it  will  be  seen 
later,  Greece  and  her  pupil  Italy  repaid  with  interest  to  Persia,  heir 
of  the  Assyrian  art,  centuries  afterwards. 

While,  after  the  perfection  of  the  floral  forms,  Greece  was  wid- 
ening the  field  of  her  textile  decoration,  the  far  East,  too,  developed 
a  newer  richness  in  its  weavings,  the  renown  of  which  is  so  abund- 
antly preserved.  How  prominent  a  feature  the  carpets  were  of  all 
the  life  of  the  Orient,  plain  and  hodden  in  its  poverty,  bright  and 
sumptuous  in  its  splendor,  the  literature  of  all  its  eras  shows.  The 
Bible,  from  Genesis  to  Revelation,  is  filled  with  allusions  to  them. 
Their  colors  brighten  the  pages  of  Homer.  Herodotus  and  Strabo 
bear  witness  to  the  use  of  gold  and  silver  carpets  upon  the  floors  in 
Persia.  The  chroniclers  of  conquest  pause  in  their  narratives  to 
tell  of  the  fabrics  which  were  like  a  sunrise  of  gold  upon  a  world 
strewn  with  blossoms.     Every   author  of  antiquity  whose  writings 

17 


ORIENTALRUGS 

the  hand  of  Time  has  spared  has  left  record  of  those  splendid 
weavings. 

For  centuries,  down  into  the  Christian  era,  the  fame  of  the 
Persian  carpets  grew  among  the  people  of  the  West,  and  vessels  ply- 
ing the  Mediterranean  carried  rich  freights  of  textiles  to  golden 
Rome.  Fortunes  were  lavished  on  them.  Upon  their  conquest  of 
Byzantium  the  Romans  appropriated  much  of  its  civilization,  but 
again  receding,  left  its  art  almost  unaltered  by  their  presence.  The 
East  has  remained  the  fountain-head  of  harmony.  Even  war  and  car- 
nage had  no  power  to  quell  the  spirit  of  its  art.  The  Crusaders 
came  home  with  their  wonderful  stories,  and  wore  on  their  shields  as 
heraldic  devices  the  dragons  and  griffins  and  nameless  birds  which 
Egypt  had  centuries  before  wrought  upon  the  tapestries  of  its  tem- 
ples. The  Troubadors  sang,  and  the  spirit  of  the  East  had  entered 
into  their  singing.     Europe  went  Araby  mad. 

The  Saracens,  swarming  into  Spain,  took  with  them  the  East- 
ern looms  and  patterns  and  hues,  and  wove  in  Cordova  and  other 
towns  carpets  like  those  of  the  Orient.  Through  all  Europe,  in  this 
fashion,  went  the  famous  "carpets  of  Baldechine"'  and  with  them  the 
legend  and  poesy  and  mysticism  of  the  land  where  they  were  born. 

While  the  influence  was  spreading  along  the  shores  of  the 
Mediterranean,  another  track  had  been  opened  by  which  notions  of 
this  dyeing  and  weaving  and  other  Oriental  handicrafts  had  been 
making  way  overland  as  far  as  Scandinavia,  leaving  all  the  way  a 
trail  which  is  plain  to  the  present  time.  There  have  been  found  in 
towns  on  the  Norse  islands  coins  which  show  that  commercial  rela- 
tions existed  between  those  parts  and  the  Orient  early  in  the  Chris- 
tian centuries,  and  the  southern  races,  exploring  the  Norseland  long 
afterward,  were  amazed  at  the  skill  of  these  snow-girt  nations  in  the 
dyeing  of  wool  and  the  weaving  of  carpets  and  coverings. 

1  Baghdad. 

I8 


HISTORY 

But  the  Eastern  textile  industry  as  planted  in  turn  in  Spain, 
Sicily,  and  Venice,  retained  better  its  characteristic  form,  for  the 
Mediterranean  merchants  took  to  their  cities  the  most  skilful  weav- 
ers from  the  looms  of  Persia,  and,  first  from  Cordova,  then  from 
Palermo  in  the  twelfth  century,  and  from  Venice  in  the  fourteenth, 
Europe  was  supplied  with  carpets  of  the  true  Oriental  pattern  and 
method,  to  spread  in  its  cathedrals,  in  the  throne-rooms  of  its  royalty 
and  the  boudoirs  of  its  great  ladies. 

So  far  had  Italy  progressed  in  the  sixteenth  century  that  the 
Shah  Abbas,  whose  reign  marks  the  climax  of  development  in  Per- 
sia, sent  from  his  court,  in  order  to  demonstrate  his  antagonism  to  the 
Central  Asian  influence,  so  strong  after  the  conquests  of  Genghis, 
Tamur,  and  their  successors,  a  company  of  young  men  to  study  art 
under  Raphael.  It  was  in  the  lessons  brought  back  by  these  that 
the  seed  was  sown  of  the  ornate,  Italianesque  touch  in  decoration, 
which  is  traceable  in  the  rich  Kirman  and  Tabriz  rugs  of  the  present 
time,  and  others  made  in  imitation  of  them. 

The  same  era  marked  the  establishment  of  the  French  factories, 
for  the  manufacture  of  "  Turkish  carpets "  at  Arras,  Fontainebleau, 
Tours,  the  Louvre,  the  Tuileries,  the  Faubourg  de  St.  Antoine,  and 
the  Savonnerie,  culminating  in  the  setting  up  of  looms  at  the  Gobe- 
lins', Beauvais,  and  Aubusson  by  Colbert  for  Louis  XIV. 

With  these  we  have  naught  to  do,  save  to  note  that  at  Beauvais 
the  tradition  and  theory  of  the  Persian  carpets  were  long  lived  up  to. 
At  Aubusson  and  the  Gobelins'  the  Babylonian  richness  has  given 
way  to  Gallic  vanity,  and  the  harmonious  and  meaning  designs  of 
the  sixteenth  century  Persian  have  been  replaced  by  the  panoramic 
untruth  of  French  classicism.  The  method  in  vogue  at  the  Gobe- 
lins', known  as  the  Gobelin  technique,  is  not  that  generally  employed 
in  the  carpet-making  districts  of  the  Orient.  The  closely  trimmed 
pile,  prettily  termed  "  a  mosaic  in  wool,"  is  exchanged  for  the  pro- 

19 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

duction  of  complex  color  effects  by  the  working  of  dyed  weft-threads 
across  the  warp  in  true  tapestry  fashion.  The  crude  beginnings  of 
this  system  are  discovered  in  the  hard,  wiry  coverings  called  khi- 
lims,  made  chiefly  in  Kurdistan,  Merv,  Sehna,  Shirvan,  and  among 
the  nomad  population  in  Anatolia ;  a  further  development  of  it 
appears  in  the  pileless  Soumak  rugs  of  the  Caucasus. 

Great  Britain  had  its  first  real  knowledge  of  the  Oriental  carpet 
for  domestic  use,  from  Eleanor  of  Castile  and  her  retinue,  who 
brought  with  them  on  their  journey  into  England  in  the  thirteenth 
century  the  splendid  pieces  which  Saracen  weavers  had  turned  out 
from  the  looms  in  Cordova  and  Granada.  James  I.  established 
looms  at  Mortlake  in  Surrey,  but  the  Civil  War  put  an  end  to  their 
operation,  and  only  after  the  Edict  of  Nantes,  when  French  dyers 
and  weavers  skilled  in  the  Turkish  colors  and  patterns  took  refuge 
in  England,  was  the  work  there  resumed  with  any  measure  of 
success. 

It  was  three  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago  that  the  "  Turkish 
carpet "  looms  were  set  up  in  France,  then  leader  in  every  art.  Year 
after  year,  through  the  intervening  centuries,  spinners  have  spun 
and  dyers  have  mixed  their  dyes,  and  weavers  have  labored  patient 
at  the  loom  in  many  lands.  The  iron  age  has  contrived  machinery 
to  do  the  work  of  myriad  fingers,  and  designers,  the  best  the  schools 
of  two  continents  could  furnish,  have  fed  gorgeous  patterns  to  the 
flying  wheels,  in  hope  to  conquer  the  judgment  and  favor  of  the 
world.  And  still  the  dusky  weavers  of  Daghestan,  Kirman,  Sehna, 
Kurdistan,  and  Tabriz  are  knotting  before  their  rude  frames  the 
most  splendid  fabrics  on  the  globe,  and  the  Occident,  coin  in  hand, 
waits  upon  their  weaving. 


90 


Ill 

THE    RUG-WEAVING    PEOPLES 

IT  is  hard  not  to  put  questions  to  an  Oriental  rug  when  you  are 
alone  with  it.  What  of  this  little  web,  which  in  its  gay  Eastern 
coloring  seems  so  much  more  like  a  silent,  smiling  guest  than  a 
property  ?  Was  it  born  in  a  shepherd's  hut  in  the  pillared  mountains 
of  Central  Asia,  with  the  snow  whirling  about  the  door,  and  the  sheep 
and  camels  huddled  without  ?  Or  did  the  birds  sing  among  the  roses 
of  a  Persian  village  to  the  weaver  as  he  tied  the  stitches  in  ?  From 
what  far  defile  in  Afghanistan  did  it  journey  on  camel-back  to  the 
sea,  swept  by  the  sand-storms  of  the  desert,  scorched  by  the  Orient 
heat  ?  Was  it  paid  to  a  mollah  for  prayers  at  the  shrine  of  Mecca  or 
Meshhed?  Did  it  change  hands  in  fair  barter  in  the  market-place, 
or  did  it  pass  over  the  dead  body  of  its  rightful  owner  to  the  keeping 
of  the  swarthy  man  who  sold  it  to  the  dealers  from  Stamboul  ? 

It  has  been  maintained,  in  another  chapter,  that  Oriental  rugs, 
studied  collaterally,  tell  much  of  bygone  peoples  and  religions.  Con- 
sidered in  the  same  way,  they  are  even  more  eloquent  of  the  charac- 
ter, customs  and  conditions  of  the  Eastern  life  of  to-day.  They  have 
an  inestimable  value  in  suggestion. 

This  volume  cannot  pretend  to  describe,  even  cursorily,  the  mul- 
titudinous tribes  which  populate  the  rug-making  countries.     They  are 

n 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

spread  over  a  great  territory.  Many  of  them  are  alien  to  one  another 
in  origin.  Many  have  undergone  changes  in  speech  and  habit,  both 
by  conquest  and  peaceful  assimilation,  which  make  them  seem  kin 
when  they  are  not  kin  at  all.  Others  have  preserved  character,  cus- 
toms and  language,  unaltered  through  centuries,  and  are  to-day  prac- 
tically what  they  were  in  the  time  of  Moses.  Some  there  are,  dwelling 
in  far  fastnesses  which  look  down  over  all  Asia,  whose  province  the 
modern  geographer  has  scarcely  invaded.  Their  highways  bristle 
with  armed  men,  and  almost  the  only  knowledge  got  of  them  is  from 
the  fabrics  which  are  sent  through  the  merchants  of  the  neighboring 
and  more  pacific  tribes  to  the  great  trade  centres  and  the  fairs  in  the 
low  countries. 

Every  populous  district  throughout  the  East  holds  fair,  for  the 
purpose  of  local  traffic,  one  day  in  the  week.  Fair  day  is  as  much  an 
institution  with  them  as  is  the  Sabbath  among  the  people  of  New 
England.  These  fairs  are  rotatory.  They  are  held  in  the  different 
towns  of  the  district,  each  having  its  regular  day.  The  greater  fairs 
are  held  once  a  year,  and  the  traders  of  all  the  East  journey  to  them. 
At  Baluk-Hissar,  near  Broussa,  Asia  Minor,  the  fair  is  in  May. 
August  brings  the  famous  gathering  of  Yaprakli,  fifty  miles  north  of 
Angora,  in  the  vilayet  of  Kastamuni.  A  collection  of  log-houses  is 
there,  great,  flimsy  buildings  reared  only  for  the  purposes  of  the  fair, 
and  during  all  of  August  they  are  packed  with  men  and  merchandise. 
The  remainder  of  the  year  they  are  empty,  and  all  the  country  round 
is  unpeopled  as  a  wilderness.  Another  big  fair  is  held  near  Mosul, 
the  mercantile  centre  of  Mesopotamia. 

These  exhibitions  are  to  the  South,  in  a  small  way,  what  that  of 
Nijni  Novgorod  is  to  Russia.  But  more  significant,  in  the  present 
discussion,  are  the  great  fairs  farther  to  the  eastward,  in  the  Persian 
and  Turkoman  towns.  There  for  weeks  the  life  of  every  quarter  of 
Asia  and  Asia  Minor  may  be  seen  at  its  gayest  and  best.  No  dis- 
ss 


THE     RUG-WEAVING     PEOPLES 

tance  is  too  great  for  the  trader  to  travel  to  show  his  wares.  Mon- 
gols and  Tartars  of  the  Central  Asian  hordes,  Tekkes  from  Merv 
with  a  pigtail  down  each  side  of  the  head,  men  from  Bokhara,  clad  all 
in  white,  with  shawls  swathed  about  their  loins,  and  the  many- 
tongued  kashbag  dangling  from  their  waists,  fierce  Kurds,  descended 
from  the  Medes  and  Chaldeans  of  old,  who  can  trace  their  pedigrees 
back  in  unbroken  lines  for  a  hundred  generations,  wandering  Hats, 
bearded  Kazaks  from  the  Kirghiz  wastes,  timid,  indolent,  astute, 
mendacious,  dreamy-eyed  Persians,  greasy  Afghans  and  Beluches 
whose  most  ecstatic  joy  is  in  bloodshed.  East  Indians,  in  whose  de- 
meanor is  the  calm  of  centuries,  Syrians,  Arabs  with  horses  as  proud 
as  themselves,  Anatolians,  wheedling  Armenians,  resourceful  Greeks 
and  the  inevitable  Jew — they  are  all  there,  bargaining  away  for  dear  life. 

All  the  ways  leading  to  the  great  bazaar  are  dusty  from  the  end- 
less procession  of  heavy-laden  asses  and  camels.  Even  from  distant 
China  come  the  caravans,  and  almond-eyed  merchants  exchange  their 
bales  for  print-cloths,  clocks,  and  jewelry  of  the  Mediterranean. 
Here  one  may  learn  how  wide  is  the  field  of  Oriental  carpet  manufac- 
ture. To  this  omnium  gatherum  are  brought,  along  with  other 
wares,  the  woven  products  of  remote  districts,  and  the  rug  trader 
who  has  brow-beaten  the  people  of  his  own  village  sharpens  his  wits 
here  against  those  of  rivals  as  shrewd  and  heartless  as  himself.  But 
with  all  this  mixture  of  peoples  whose  promise  would  not  stand  for 
an  hour  with  an  American  shop-keeper,  every  man's  word,  in  a  busi- 
ness transaction,  is  as  good  as  yellow  coin.  Their  dealing  is  almost 
all  in  the  nature  of  barter,  and  obligations  are  held  good  by  word  of 
mouth  until  the  vendor  can  collect  his  debt  in  some  commodity  he 
needs,  from  a  third,  fourth  or  fifth  person  who  owes  the  purchaser. 
No  checks  are  drawn,  and  little  ready  money  passes. 

At  night,  while  the  fair  lasts,  bonfires  are  lighted  in  the  hasar  or 
yard  of  the  caravanserai — in  Turkey  it  is  called  avluh — and  in  their 

23 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

weird  light  jugglers  and  mountebanks  perform.  Wandering  trouba- 
dours, blind  men  as  a  rule,  or  Dervishes,  contest  in  improvisation,  as 
singers  were  wont  to  do  in  Europe  centuries  ago.  When  their  rhym- 
ing is  ended,  both  rise  from  the  little  rugs  which  they  carry  for  use  in 
such  engagements,  and  go  about  among  the  company,  collecting  coins 
in  their  shells  or  great  horns.  These  receptacles  are  rudely  mounted 
with  silver,  and  are  usually  swung  by  a  chain.  Shooting,  racing,  mock 
fights,  wild  music  and  such  dancing  as  surely  was  never  seen  out  of 
Asia,  make  up  the  programme  of  the  time's  delights.  Then  the 
camels,  which  came  bearing  Western  trinkets,  return  homeward  laden 
with  the  carpets  of  Persia,  Afghanistan,  and  the  Trans-Caucasus. 
Contracts  have  been  made,  and  the  middlemen  from  the  rug  districts 
go  away  with  orders  tucked  snugly  in  their  girdles.  Then  follows  a 
new  buying  of  wool,  a  new  dyeing,  and  warps  are  stretched  for  a  new 
season's  work,  upon  looms  worn  by  the  hands  of  many  generations. 

The  whole  business  of  rug-making  throughout  the  East,  except, 
of  course,  where  it  is  conducted  by  large  firms,  is  controlled  by  the 
head  merchant  of  the  town.  This  extraordinary  person  has  a  finger 
in  every  enterprise.  He  is  in  many  cases  mayor,  storekeeper,  lawyer, 
notary,  farmer,  and  whatever  else  offers  a  margin  of  money  and  influ- 
ence. Upon  the  verandah  of  his  house  are  as  many  looms  as  there 
is  room  for.  The  folk  of  his  own  household  and  the  wives  and 
daughters  of  his  neighbors  find  employment  there.  Early  morning, 
after  the  first  prayers  at  the  mosque,  sees  them  skurrying  to  the 
"  factory."  They  work  at  so  much  a  "  pick  "  of  twenty-seven  inches — 
or  in  Persia  by  the  arshin,  a  somewhat  larger  measure,  varying  in 
different  localities — but  the  price  is  merely  nominal,  for  the  earnings 
are  invariably  taken  out  in  trade  at  the  store.  The  local  potentate 
thus  manages  to  hold  them  forever  in  his  debt,  and  when  a  debtor 
dies  the  obligation  passes  on  as  a  legacy  to  the  heir. 

People  who  make  rugs  in  their  own  homes  are  none  the  less  in 

24 


Plate  III.    Kazak  Sedjadeh 

7.2x5.11 
Loaned  by  Mr.  Lewis  S.  Bigeloiv 

The  bold  character  of  the  Kazak  nomads,  to  which  some  reference  has  been 
made  in  the  text,  is  quite  plainly  expressed  in  this  heavy  fabric.  The  massing 
of  color  is  infinitely  strong,  and  it  is  fearless  as  well — witness  the  heavy  trian- 
gular spaces  of  green  and  blue  thrust  against  one  another  in  the  border.  How 
rude  these  people  are  may  be  seen  by  comparing  this  version  of  the  wine-glass 
border  with  that  found  in  the  black  and  white  reproduction  of  the  Shirvan  rug 
(Plate  VII). 

The  octagons  in  the  field,  with  their  rough  adornment  of  stars,  as  well  as 
the  larger  medallion  and  the  tarantula  affair  in  the  centre,  are  all  recognized 
marks  of  Turkestan,  whence  these  people  long  ago  took  their  origin.  For  in- 
dication of  their  artistic  skill,  as  compared  with  that  of  the  rovers  of  their  par- 
ent  plains,  contrast  the  drawing  of  all  these  figures  in  the  central  part  of  the 
rug  with  that  found  in  the  Tekke  carpet  exhibited  under  the  title  Yomud 
(Plate  XXIII),  and  in  the  small  Tekke  prayer  rug  (Plate  XXI). 

The  nomad  tendency  to  scatter  small  bits  of  color  through  a  space  other- 
wise unoccupied  may  be  seen  in  its  freest  indulgence  here.  But  when  consid- 
ered as  a  savage  display  of  strong  color,  perhaps  no  carpet  in  the  collection  ex. 
eels  this.  The  shading  of  the  blues  and  greens,  a  trick  which  these  half-bar- 
barians seem  to  have  caught  from  the  Kurds  with  whom  they  are  in  constant 
contact,  should  be  noted.  The  wool  from  which  the  rug  is  made  is  of  the  finest 
and  its  lustre  is  admirable. 


but  th 


k.  K?l.  ENFIAJIAN  fit 


cd 


THE     RUG-WEAVING     PEOPLES 

the  tudjar's  power.  He  provides  them  with  wool,  sees  to  the  paying 
of  the  dyer,  advances  to  them  whatever  groceries  and  other  supplies 
they  need,  and  keeping  a  studious  eye  on  the  progress  of  their  work, 
appropriates  the  carpet  when  it  is  finished,  and  adds  it  to  his  store  of 
merchandise  to  be  taken  to  the  next  fair  for  sale. 

Monotonous  and  profitless  and  hopeless  as  this  system  is,  the 
Oriental  people  cling  to  it.  They  have  a  weavers'  guild — esnaff,  the 
Turk  calls  it — but  it  never  undertakes  to  regulate  wages.  Its  chief 
function  is  to  protest — and  that  heartily — against  any  innovation 
upon  this  old  method  of  procedure,  to  lift  up  its  voice  in  rebellion 
when  any  mention  is  made  of  the  importation  of  European  machinery 
to  aid  in  the  spinning  or  dyeing  of  the  yarn. 

The  burden  of  the  rug-weaving,  in  all  the  carpet  countries,  save 
India,  falls  to  the  women.  They  are  patient,  nimble-fingered,  and 
learn  the  patterns  quickly.  In  some  parts  of  Anatolia  and  Persia  the 
great  demand  in  Western  markets  has  driven  men  to  the  loom,  and 
in  the  cities  of  Persia  where  rug-making  has  flourished  for  centuries 
under  the  personal  tutelage  of  royalty  and  nobility,  the  best  artisans 
are  men.  But  in  the  more  remote  sections,  and  among  the  nomads, 
the  women  do  all  the  weaving.  They  are  the  designers,  too.  They 
invent  from  year  to  year  all  the  modifications  of  the  old  patterns. 
The  head  woman,  the  traveller  Vambery  relates,  makes  a  tracing  upon 
the  earth,  doles  out  the  wool,  and  in  some  of  the  tribes  chants  in  a  weird 
sing-song  the  number  of  stitches  and  the  color  in  which  they  are  to 
be  filled,  as  the  work  goes  on.'     As  little  girls  of  six  or  seven  years 


'  This  "rule  o'  thumb"  method  of  designing  is  not  confined  in  the  Orient  to  rug-making 
nomads.  It  is  common  throughout  Asia  Minor,  even  nowadays,  to  see  builders,  who  are  their  own 
architects  as  well,  tracing  on  the  ground  the  plans  for  successive  steps  of  the  work  they  are  engaged 
upon.  No  general  plan  is  made  in  advance,  except  in  the  case  of  a  great  palace,  bath  or  mosque, 
where  a  miniature  made  by  the  master  builder  himself  is  used.  Ordinarily,  he  plans  as  he  goes.  The 
design  drawn  on  the  ground  is  carefully  studied.  If  it  bids  fair  to  come  out  all  right  the  quarrymen 
and  stone-cutters  are  ordered  to  cut  according  to  it.  The  only  measure  employed  is  the  primitive  one 
of  the  "hand's  span." 

as 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

the  women  begin  to  work  about  the  looms,  rolling  and  passing  the 
yarn,  then  learning  to  beat  down  the  rows  of  knots  after  the  weft  has 
been  thrown  across.  The  first  actual  weaving  they  do  is  on  the 
broad  central  fields  of  solid  color ;  and  from  that  they  work  up  to  the 
handling  of  complex  patterns.  The  borders  are  the  final  test  of  skill. 
The  girl's  first  earnings  are  spent  in  self-adornment — the  purchase  of 
ornaments  such  as  she  must  wear  her  whole  life  through.  At  sixteen 
she  must  be  skilled  enough  at  her  trade  to  begin  thinking  of  a  hus- 
band. It  would  be  harsh  to  say  that  the  girl  is  sold  into  the  servi- 
tude of  providing  this  lord  with  food,  clothing,  and  his  modicum  of 
tobacco  and  raki,  but  the  terms  of  marriage  make  clear  the  purely 
business  nature  of  the  transaction.  A  contre  dot,  to  phrase  it  mildly, 
is  paid  by  the  husband  to  the  father  of  the  bride.  If  her  first  spouse 
be  called  away  by  death  from  the  enjoyment  of  such  an  arrangement, 
the  next  who  weds  her  must  pay  more.  Repeated  bereavement  only 
serves  to  augment  her  value.  This  rule  is  plainly  based  on  the 
theory  that  with  each  new  year  of  experience  at  the  loom,  she  be- 
comes able  to  earn  more  money  by  her  weaving. 

In  some  parts  of  Asia,  notably  in  Kurdistan  and  Eastern  Turke- 
stan, and  among  the  Yuruks  of  Anatolia,  the  women  enjoy  some  mea- 
sure of  emancipation.  They  go  abroad  unveiled,  and  laugh  at  the 
slavery  in  which  their  sisters  in  other  sections  are  held.  But  the 
Turkish  or  Persian  woman  of  the  weaving  class  is  content.  Her  life 
mission  is  to  work  for  her  husband ;  she  does  it  uncomplainingly.  He 
helps  her  in  the  handling  of  the  wool,  and  maybe  in  spinning  and 
dyeing.  In  his  spare  time  he  tills  a  little  land,  raises  some  wheat 
and  vegetables,  tends  a  small  vineyard  or  has  a  field  of  dye  products. 

This  last  was  a  famous  occupation  for  men  in  the  Orient,  until 
the  chemical  dyes  began  to  be  imported.  Since  then  it  has  declined 
until  there  is  no  longer  any  profit  in  it.  With  digging  alizarin  root 
in  the  winter  months,  when  the  sap  is  down,  gathering  the  yellow 

s6 


THE     RUG-WEAVING     PEOPLES 

seeds,  valonias,  and  gallnuts  in  the  fall,  and  the  many  flowering 
shrubs  and  berries  in  their  seasons,  the  weaving  woman's  husband 
could  fill  in  a  good  share  of  his  year,  and,  if  he  was  saving,  add 
a  pretty  penny  to  her  earnings. 

But  the  old  dyes,  especially  in  the  sections  most  accessible  from 
the  coast,  are  out  of  fashion.  The  anilines,  which  have  been  indus- 
triously pushed  by  invading  agents,  are  about  six-sevenths  cheaper, 
and  require  no  long  process  of  compounding.  Alizarin,  when  veget- 
able dyes  were  universally  used,  sold  for  twenty  dollars  a  hundred- 
weight. It  has  now  fallen  to  three  dollars  or  less  ;  and  not  only  is  it 
an  unprofitable  crop,  but  the  land  where  it  has  grown  is  thenceforth 
ruined  for  any  other  purpose.  The  Oriental  farmer  spends,  in  clear- 
ing his  fields  of  the  tenacious  roots,  more  than  he  has  ever  made  by 
their  cultivation.  So  the  male  of  the  carpet-making  family  idles,  and 
is  happy  therein. 

For  education,  there  is  little  of  it.  In  some  districts  the  authori- 
ties, spurred  on  by  the  missionaries  and  by  the  Western  cry  for 
reforms,  have  in  late  years  opened  schools.  But  the  work  of  instruc- 
tion lags.  Reading  and  writing  are  about  the  extreme  limit  of  eru- 
dition. Besides  these  schools,  the  village  priest,  who  is  also  village 
schoolmaster,  teaches  children  to  sing  verses  of  the  Koran.  In  parts 
of  Persia  learning  is  more  prized.  There  is  rather  more  inclination 
to  educate  the  young  than  in  Turkey.  The  low-class  Turk  seldom 
knows  even  how  to  read  or  write.  Information  of  an  ofificial  sort  is 
conveyed  to  him  not  through  the  medium  of  newspapers  or  placards, 
but  by  the  government  herald,  or  town  crier,  who  goes  about  clanging 
a  lusty  bell,  and  shouting,  '' Bou  gyun  Allah  couveti  ilan*'^ — the 
solemn  formula  introductory  to  his  errand. 

The  Greek  and  Armenian  populations  are  wiser  in  their  day  and 
generation.     They  make  their  lives  and  customs  conform  to  progress. 

•  "  T(Mlay  with  the  help  of  God." 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

They  utilize  every  innovation,  turn  every  invasion  to  their  own  profit. 
They  are  wedges  which  are  helping,  by  slow  degrees,  to  open  Asia  to 
the  commerce,  learning  and  freedom  of  the  West.  In  the  schools 
of  their  communities,  found  in  most  of  the  large  towns,  the  pupils  are 
taught  the  handicrafts,  the  making  of  embroideries,  cushions,  counter- 
panes and  slippers  from  European  patterns.  This  sort  of  kindergarten 
training  has  large  practical  value.  It  makes  them  apt  at  following 
strange  designs,  and  secures  them  employment  upon  the  high-priced 
fantaisie  work  which  is  all  made  upon  orders,  and  which  the  Turkish 
women  are  unable  to  master. 

In  the  mind  of  the  Turk  there  is  a  deep-seated  distrust  and  dis- 
like of  the  European  and  his  improvements  ;  among  the  even  more 
conservative  races  farther  East  this  antipathy  is  a  passion.  In  the 
mountain  regions  there  are  tracts  where  safety  for  the  "  Frank  " — as  all 
Europeans  are  called — is  a  thing  unknown  ;  where  his  life  and  valuables 
are  almost  certain  to  be  taken  by  the  first  roving  company  that  spies 
him,  unless,  indeed,  he  be  held  for  ransom.  His  only  absolute  safety 
against  molestation  is  in  an  Oriental  escort,  backed  up  by  a  passport 
and  tezkereh,  with  instructions  mandatory  upon  all  officials  along  the 
line  of  his  journey  to  see  to  it  that  he  goes  unharmed. 

There  is  usually,  however,  a  warm  welcome  for  the  native  way- 
farer from  the  Mediterranean  coasts,  and  it  is  a  red  letter  day  when  a 
traveller  comes  to  one  of  the  hamlets  which,  for  the  sake  of  safety 
from  marauders,  are  formed  by  the  huddling  together  of  the  farmers 
who  till  the  fields  for  a  distance  of  perhaps  twenty  miles  about.  The 
son  of  the  mukhtar  (mayor)  holds  the  voyager's  bridle.  The  mukh- 
tar  himself  helps  him  to  dismount,  leads  him  into  the  house,  and 
makes  him  the  central  attraction  of  the  place,  as  long  as  the  sojourn 
lasts.  The  foremost  of  the  townsmen  come  to  add  their  greetings, 
and,  incidentally,  to  look  the  newcomer  over,  and  see  if  he  have  not 
some  new  wonder  to  tell  or  show.     It  is  an  imposing  ceremony,  for- 

28 


THE     RUG- WEAVING     PEOPLES 

mal  as  a  court  function,  and  yet  fraught  with  all  cordiality.  The  host 
lights  the  fire  in  the  mussajir  odasi,  or  guest  room,  and  spreads  be- 
fore it  the  hearth  rug,  proudest  possession  of  the  household.  Chairs 
there  are  none.  Along  the  sides  of  the  room  heavy  felt  divans  are 
arranged,  and  over  them  are  spread  rugs  of  fine  quality,  with  rich, 
rug-covered  pillows  for  comfort's  sake.  At  the  head  of  the  apartment 
sits  the  host,  with  the  guest  at  his  right  hand. 

When  the  salaaming  is  over  and  all  are  seated,  the  first  of  the 
callers  takes  from  some  recess  of  his  raiment  a  little  bag  of  raw  cof- 
fee-beans. This  he  hands  to  the  village  dandy,  an  indispensable  per- 
son on  such  occasions,  who  goes  to  the  fire-place,  and  sitting  cross- 
legged  on  the  odjaklik,  browns  the  berries  in  a  long-handled  pan, 
which  he  shakes  over  the  fire  like  a  corn-popper.  This  done,  he  places 
them  in  a  wooden  mortar,  and  with  an  iron  pestle  begins  to  crush 
them,  droning  a  chant  of  welcome  meanwhile,  and  beating  time  upon 
the  coffee  as  he  sings.  Then  he  puts  th^jezveh  or  coffee-pot  on  the 
fire  to  boil.  While  this  solemn  proceeding  goes  on  the  guest,  if  he  be 
versed  in  the  customs  of  the  country,  passes  his  tobacco  among  the 
company,  who  roll  cigarettes ;  and  then  the  coffee  comes.  Thus 
amid  the  soothing  fumes,  and  the  even  better-loved  incense  of  talk, 
the  night  wears  away.  Each  visitor  in  his  turn  produces  a  bag  of 
coffee,  and  before  the  company  disperses  half  a  hundred  cups  may 
have  been  swallowed  by  every  one  of  them,  in  case  this  traveller 
be  what  every  good  traveller  should  be,  and  what  the  Oriental  loves 
almost  as  well  as  himself,  a  story-teller. 

A  session  of  Heidelberg  examiners  could  not  quiz  him  more  in- 
dustriously than  does  this  room-full  of  villagers.  Despite  the  stub- 
born resistance  of  these  communities  to  industrial  innovations,  their 
interrogatories  show  the  consuming  interest  they  feel  in  the  progress 
of  the  outside  world.  Steam,  electricity,  all  manner  of  Prankish  cus- 
toms, inventions,  agriculture  and  its  mechanisms,  methods  of  trade, 

«9 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

prices — these  are  the  things  upon  which  their  interest  centres.  But 
there  is  in  their  questioning,  for  all  its  closeness  and  persistency, 
naught  of  intrusion  or  discourtesy ;  they  never  pry  into  the  visitor's 
religious,  political,  or  family  affairs.  The  comfort  arid  safety  of  a 
guest  are  paramount.  He  abides  there  as  long  as  it  pleases  him,  eats 
his  fill  of  the  family  comestibles — thin  bread  and  sheep's-tail  i^X, pilaffs 
or  whatever  there  may  be — and  goes  on  his  way  without  mention  of 
recompense  from  the  host.  A  wrong  done  to  him  is  a  wrong  done  to 
the  head  of  the  house  where  he  is  harbored,  and  personal  redress  is 
tolerably  sure  to  follow  it.  Not  alone  is  this  true  of  the  more  cul- 
tured part  of  the  population.  Even  among  the  wind-swept  habita- 
tions of  the  mountaineers,  whose  hoard  is  little,  and  to  whom  a  human 
life  is  so  much  chaff,  guesthood  is  sacred. 

There  are  many  Christian  weavers  in  the  Orient,  yet  there  is  an 
utter  absence  of  rugs  betokening  the  Christian  faith,  save  that  the 
Greek  cross,  doubtless  without  any  religious  intent,  is  worked  in  the 
body  of  the  Kazaks  and  in  some  Tzitzis.  It  must  be  remembered 
that  the  Christian  teaching  is  nineteen  hundred  years  old,  but  with 
this  single  exception  its  emblems  are  not  found  in  any  Oriental  rugs 
made  for  market,  though  Indian  and  Mongol  have  wrought  their  creeds 
in  wool,  and  every  sect  of  Islam  has  given  its  belief  expression  in  its 
fabrics.  The  desire  for  money  has,  of  course,  lured  them  to  sell  these 
almost  sacred  things,  and  carpets  inwoven  with  the  Koran  have  been 
smuggled  out  in  spite  of  the  governmental  prohibition,  to  be  trod  by 
the  foot  of  any  infidel  who  was  rich  enough  to  buy  them. 

In  a  letter  to  the  writer,  Mr.  L.  A.  Springer,  European  corre- 
spondent of  the  United  Press,  who  travelled  all  through  south- 
eastern Europe  and  the  Levant  during  and  after  the  Graeco-Turkish 
war,  has  thrown  light  upon  this  absence  of  the  Christian  emblems 
from  the  rugs  imported  to  America.     He  said  : 

"  I  have  just  come  from  Novi  Varos,  a  little  place  in  the  Sanjak 

JO 


THE     RUG-WEAVING     PEOPLES 

of  Novi  Bazaar.  It  offers  a  fair  specimen  of  what  the  Mussulman 
policy  is  doing  for  Christian  communities  in  the  Turkish  dominions. 
Years  ago  Novi  Varos  throve  by  the  manufacture  of  curious  rugs. 
They  were  sent  to  Paris  and  London,  and  found  great  favor  with  the 
amateurs.  But  Novi  Varos  was  almost  entirely  Christian,  so  the 
Porte  put  a  *  last-straw  tax  *  on  the  inhabitants  and  ended  their  mak- 
ing of  rugs  for  the  trade.  To-day  the  little  town,  straggling  in  the 
depths  of  its  valley,  has  about  half  its  former  population.  Houses 
stand  vacant,  and  the  Greek  church,  which  was  begun  in  more 
prosperous  times,  is  unfinished.  The  Turkish  law,  fortunately  for 
the  Christian  pocketbook,  forbids  bells,  and  the  congregation  is 
called  to  service  by  the  clapping  together  of  two  boards.  Every 
girl  is  still  a  weaver  of  rugs,  but  not  for  market.  Her  rug  is  her 
dowry.  She  spends  all  her  girlhood  weaving  it,  that  it  may  cover 
her  marriage  bed. 

"  I  went  with  the  village  priest  into  some  of  the  houses.  They 
are  very  poor  and  squalid,  but  in  almost  every  one  is  hidden  one  of 
those  superb  rugs.  Their  beauty,  as  the  women  brought  them  out 
from  the  chests  in  which  they  are  kept,  made  a  striking  contrast  with 
the  mean  surroundings. 

'•  The  nap  of  these  rugs  is  wool,  but  hemp  is  used  for  warp  and 
weft.  The  people  make  their  own  dyes  from  barks.  The  designs 
are  almost  wholly  of  a  religious  character — the  symbols  of  the 
church.  Upon  one  was  woven  the  figure  of  the  Virgin,  in  the  pecu- 
liar Byzantine  style  of  the  pictures  in  the  Greek  chapels.  Another 
represented  a  priest  in  his  richest  robes.  Others  were  a  mingling  of 
patterns  from  vestments. 

"  These  people  have  absolutely  no  idea  of  drawing,  or  of  form, 
as  taught  in  schools ;  many  of  them  have  never  seen  a  picture,  ex- 
cept those  in  the  village  chapel,  nor  a  rug  made  anywhere  else  than 
in  Novi  Varos ;  yet  their  weavings  are  all  artistic,  and  the  colors 

91 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

tastefully  chosen.  The  body  of  the  rug  is  almost  invariably  white, 
the  principal  border  red,  relieved  with  tints  of  blue  and  green,  and  a 
deal  of  brilliancy  is  lent  to  them  by  the  use  of  the  most  flamboyant 
yellow." 


Ihrnz  T 
nworfa 
gnolfi  inH^ 
,nBviiri2 
odi  loIoD 
Ik  ma  B  iji/j}^' 
iB  bnuo 
u^IbS   c 


1 


biju  aiiJ  oj 


!ue   oi 


/  iflgim  guT  ?iriT 
ift  DflJ  ^  x^HBqoiDsih 

J?.BCb  riBiq^BD  srf J 

/[b^iul  III  riDiflv/ 

jj'jViaq  j^mlB  at  ^oo'iq 

Old  jfub  lo  -ABOii?. 

)o  luo    ,qo}  arf) 
.gnivBov/ 


Plate  IV.    Baku  Rug 

15. 1  X  4.8 

Property  of  the  A  uthor 

This  rug  might  well  be  declared  a  thoroughgoing  Kabistan,  save  for  small 
discrepancy  in  the  finishings.  Instead  of  the  broad  cotton  selvage  shown 
by  the  Kabistans  the  weavers  of  the  old  Baku  Province  just  to  the  East  along 
the  Caspian  coasts,  affect  a  single  cord  edging,  after  the  manner  of  Shirvan, 
which  in  turnadjoins  the  Baku  district  on  the  South.  In  design  and  color  the 
piece  is  almost  perfect  Kabistan,  even  to  the  birds  in  the  corners,  but  a  small 
streak  of  dull  brown,  probably  camel's  hair,  thrown  across  the  blue  ground  at 
the  top,  out  .of  deference  to  superstition,  immediately  suggests  the  Baku 
weaving. 


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IV 

MATERIALS 

IT  is  pleasant  to  believe  that  warmth  of  temperament,  deep  love 
of  nature,  delicacy  of  feeling,  and  an  inherent  sense  of  harmony, 
coupled  with  monumental  patience,  are  the  causes  of  the  long- 
continued  supremacy  of  the  Easterns  in  the  making  of  textiles.  But 
there  is  another  reason,  which  must  by  no  means  be  lost  sight  of. 
The  venerable  recipe  for  making  rabbit  pie,  which  involves  as  a 
primary  ingredient  the  capture  of  the  rabbit,  is  in  point.  Nature  has 
indeed  endowed  the  Oriental  with  all  the  essential  qualities  of  an 
artist,  but  Divine  generosity  and  consistency  are  more  clearly  dis- 
played in  the  fact  that  there  has  been  placed  at  his  hand  every  ma- 
terial needful  for  the  prosecution  of  his  art.  All  the  Eastern  coun- 
tries, which  may  be  called  in  this  connection  the  rug-making  coun- 
tries, reaching  far  north  of  the  constantly  advancing  Russian  border, 
and  from  the  Mediterranean  to  the  Great  Wall  of  China,  are  natural 
homes  of  the  animals  which  yield  textile  filaments. 

One  can  easily  understand,  in  this  light,  how  the  Caucasian, 
Turk,  Persian  and  Tartar,  equipped  with  the  faculty  and  supplied 
with  the  means,  have  held  their  own,  and  more,  against  the  artisans 
and  designers  of  the  West,  and  the  unlimited  machinery  with  which 
science  has  striven  to  outdo  them.     These  lands  of  the  West,  com- 

33 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

manding  in  altitude,  benign  in  climate,  in  great  part  bountifully  wa- 
tered, seem  to  have  been  providentially  mapped  out  for  pastures. 
Parts  of  the  vast  plateaus  and  sweeping  foothill  regions,  distributed 
over  Asia  Minor,  the  districts  of  Kurdistan,  western  and  southern 
Persia,  Turkestan,  Beluchistan  and  Afghanistan,'  are  in  truth  good 
for  little  else  but  grazing,  and  for  this  they  are  peerless.  Divided  by 
great  water-courses,  and  laced  by  lesser  streams,  they  are,  save  in 
some  few  unfavored  parts,  not  afflicted  by  trying  rain  periods,  and 
heaven  tempers  the  winds,  even  of  the  Kirghiz  steppes,  to  the  lamb 
whether  shorn  or  unshorn.  Sheep,  goats,  camels,  vast  herds  of  them, 
roam  these  uplands,  where  they  find  a  quality  of  nutriment  for  which 
chemistry  has  not  yet  been  able  to  devise  a  wool-making  equivalent.* 
There  is  no  quarter  of  the  world  which  has  not  heard  the  fame  of  the 
goats  of  Angora  and  Kashmir.  No  country,  save  perchance  the  up- 
lands of  Spain,  has  produced  wool  equal  to  that  shorn  from  the  sheep 
^herding  about  the  salt  lake  of  Niris  in  Farsistan. 

That  there  is  something,  either  in  the  grass  upon  these  plains,  or 
in  the  climatic  conditions,  which  affects  beneficially  the  growth  of 
wool,  has  been  demonstrated  by  the  utter  failure  to  raise  the  animals 
of  these  localities  elsewhere  with  an  equal  degree  of  success,  although 


*  The  volume  of  the  wool  product  of  Afghanistan  is  enormous.  Yule  says  that  besides  fur- 
nishing wool  for  the  Afghan  carpets,  the  flocks  of  these  mountains  and  plateaus  supply  to  a  great 
extent  the  demand  of  India,  and  in  addition  a  great  quantity  of  Afghan  wool  is  exported  to  Europe 
by  way  of  Bombay. 

'  '•  In  the  manufacture  of  carpets,  although  all  are  made  upon  one  general  plan,  certain  peculi- 
arities mark  each  country  and  each  district.  For  example,  in  some  places  the  foundation  upon  which 
the  pile  is  woven  is  of  cotton  ;  in  others,  of  wool ;  and  in  others  again,  silk  is  used.  In  Kurdistan, 
the  foundation  is  usually  made  of  wool,  and  the  pile  of  goat's-hair  or  camel's-hair.  Great  differences 
exist  in  the  quality  of  these  materials  in  different  places.  The  wool  of  the  sheep,  as  is  well  known, 
changes  its  character  according  as  the  habitat  of  the  animal  is  a  warm,  a  cold,  or  a  temperate  climate. 
In  Kurdistan  and  Khorassan  the  wool  is  extremely  soft,  and  in  some  parts  very  lustrous.  This  is  due 
in  part  to  the  breed  of  sheep,  and  in  part  to  the  pasturage  on  which  they  are  nourished.  ...  In  many 
places,  also,  the  fleeces  are  of  varied  shades  of  color,  deepening  to  actual  brown  and  black,  and  are 
used  in  the  designs  in  their  natural  condition  without  dyeing.  This  is  a  circumstance  of  some  techni- 
cal importance,  never  as  yet,  so  far  as  I  am  aware,  much  noticed." — Robinson's  "Eastern  Carpets" 

34 


MATERIALS 

effort  has  been  made  repeatedly,  and  at  great  expense.  Long,  fine 
wool  for  the  nap  is  indispensable  in  the  weaving  of  these  knot  fabrics, 
and  a  desperately  small  price  is  apt  to  be  fetched  in  the  Smyrna  and 
Constantinople  markets  by  rugs  from  districts  where  the  pasturage  is 
poor.  In  these  places  the  weavers,  to  uphold  the  quality  of  their 
fabrics,  are  forced  to  use  the  fine  pluckings  from  the  goat's-fleece. 
These  by  lustre  and  softness,  make  partial  amends  for  the  quality  im- 
parted only  by  the  fine  lamb's-wool. 

The  availability  of  wool  for  textile  uses  is  determined  by  the 
construction  of  the  hairs.  That  which  under  the  microscope  presents 
the  greatest  number  of  serrations  upon  its  surface  lends  itself  most 
readily  to  weaving.  In  this  regard  much  of  the  wool  of  Eastern 
Kurdistan  excels  even  the  famed  Merino  of  Spain,  or  the  equally 
praiseworthy  Southdown. 

For  rugs  of  the  heavier  quality,  such  as  the  ponderous  Oushaks 
and  Anatolians,  the  sheep  of  the  Asia  Minor  plains  produce  a  wool 
that  is  adequate  in  length,  and,  while  coarse,  as  it  must  be,  is  quite 
soft  to  the  touch  and  very  even. 

The  herding  of  the  multitudes  of  sheep  and  goats  over  three 
millions  of  square  miles  of  territory  furnishes  livelihood  to  number- 
less tribes  of  nomads,  who  pass  a  portion  of  the  year  in  and  about  the 
towns  and  villages,  and  start  out  upon  the  ranges  as  soon  as  the  sea- 
son is  sufficiently  advanced.  The  shepherd,  setting  forth  at  morning 
with  his  flock,  carries  wool,  spindle,  and  distaff,  in  addition  to  proven- 
der and  his  indispensable  arms,  and  whiles  away  the  hours  of  the 
long  day,  twirling  his  spindle  and  singing  to  his  own  delectation  the 
"  songs  of  Araby  and  tales  of  fair  Cashmere." 

Careful  to  single  out  the  choice  wool  for  their  own  uses,  if  they 
be  rug-makers  as  well  as  flock-tenders,  the  shepherds  pay  strict  atten- 
tion to  the  combing  of  the  young  lambs,  which,  at  one  season  of  the 
year,  shed  a  fine  undergrowth.     This,  when  the  clearing  up  of  the 

35 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

wool  is  made,  is  placed  with  the  fleeces  of  lambs  sheared  for  the  first 
time  and  choice  parts  plucked  from  the  wool  of  the  older  sheep,  and 
usually  retained  for  the  tribal  chef  cTceuvre.  In  different  parts  of 
>  Persia  this  is  called  pashim  or  pasham^  and  is  used  in  the  making 
of  the  finest  shawls  and  prayer-rugs. 

May  is  the  shearing-time.  These  Eastern  shepherds  are  deft 
shearsmen,  and  even  more  deft  at  sorting  the  several  parts  of  the 
fleeces,  detecting  small  imperfections  in  the  portions  ordinarily 
accounted  best,  and  so  distributing  every  handful  that  the  yarn,  when 
it  comes  to  the  weaver's  hands,  shall  possess  the  evenness  only  to  be 
secured  by  infinite  skill  and  care  in  the  handling  of  the  wool. 

After  the  sale,  which  follows  close  upon  the  shearing,  the  prepar- 
ation of  the  wool  begins.  It  is  a  complex  process,  first  and  last,  and 
one  which  requires  experience  and  painstaking  almost  beyond  belief. 
The  inhabitants  of  the  several  sections  have  different  notions  concern- 
ing the  treatment.  Methods  which  centuries  of  experiment  have 
-  approved  in  one  district  are  condemned  in  another  as  ruinous.  It  is 
altogether  likely  that  there  is  that  in  the  wools  of  the  different  growths 
which  demands  for  them  just  the  handling  practiced  in  the  localities 
where  they  are  produced. 

The  first  step,  after  the  sticks  and  other  foreign  substances  have 
been  dislodged,  is  the  washing  and  scouring.  As  to  the  best  way  of 
'doing  this,  too,  opinions  vary  widely.  In  Asia  Minor  and  throughout 
the  Trans-Caucasus  the  wool  is  washed  many  times  in  cold  water, 
without  being  allowed  to  dry  between  washings.  When  cleansed  of 
dirt,  and  of  the  natural  grease  of  the  animal,  it  is  placed  in  large 
granite  mortars,  called  tubecs,  and  covered  with  a  mixture  of  flour  and 
water,  or  with  starch.  The  men  of  the  family  pound  and  mix  the 
mass  thoroughly,  with  great  wooden  mallets.  It  is  then  taken  out, 
placed  in  baskets,  and  in  them  washed  again  for  two  or  three  hours  in 
a  running  stream,  until  the  last  trace  of  the  starch  shall  have  disap- 

36 


MATERIALS 

peared.  This  washing  is  of  scarcely  less  importance,  in  the  eyes  of 
the  Oriental  wool-handler,  than  the  delicate  operations  of  the  dyers 
themselves.  Much  depends  upon  the  quality  of  the  water,  and  the 
superiority  of  one  stream  over  another  has  been  so  thoroughly  proven 
by  successive  generations  that  it  is  acknowledged  without  dispute. 
1  Soft  water,  of  course,  is  the  thing  sought.  Hard  water  necessitates 
the  use  of  potash,  which  cuts  the  wool  in  such  manner  that  when 
rugs  made  of  it  are  brought  into  service  they  endure  for  only  a  short 
space. 

The  washing  over,  the  wool  is  exposed  to  the  sun  to  dry.  About 
this  proceeding  the  Oriental  is  equally  fastidious.  A  particular  degree 
of  warmth,  a  precise  amount  of  sun,  and  wind  from  a  certain  quarter 
are  relied  upon  to  work  a  marked  superiority  in  the  carpet,  and  where 
the  wool  is  intended  for  fabrics  of  the  first  quality,  or  is  ordered  for 
the  execution  of  2l  farmaish  (made  to  order),  the  wool-worker  will 
wait  for  weather  conditions  to  his  liking.  Even  in  the  spreading 
there  is  a  knack  essential  to  the  best  results  in  the  finished  goods. 
The  drying,  besides  being  gradual,  must  be  even. 

Refined  by  all  these  processes,  the  wool  is  weighed  up,  prepara- 
tory to  picking  and  carding.  There  is  a  sad  difference  between  the. 
weight  of  the  fleece  as  it  comes  from  the  shearer  and  of  the  residue 
after  all  the  days  of  washing,  scouring,  and  drying.  About  thirty  per 
cent,  is  lost  in  actual  dirt  and  probably  thirty  per  cent,  more  in  ani- 
mal oil,  so  that,  though  the  average  weight  of  a  whole  fleece,  newly 
sheared,  is  about  five  pounds,  it  is  a  good  one  that  nets  more  than 
two  or  two  and  a  half. 

The  old  devices  for  picking  or  loosing  the  wool  from  the  mats 
in  which  it  is  left  after  drying  are  as  simple  as  they  are  odd.  That  in 
most  general  use  is  merely  a  huge  bow,  a  strong,  hardwood  pole, 
seven  or  eight  feet  in  length,  strung  with  stout  gut.  This  formidable 
weapon,  subdued  to  purposes  of  peace,  is  suspended  by  its  middle 

37 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

from  the  ceiling,  so  that  the  cord  just  touches  the  heap  of  wool.  The 
picker  is  armed  with  a  bell-shaped  mallet,  which  he  plies  with  period- 
ical staccato  upon  the  bowstring,  and  by  the  vibration  the  wool  is 
whipped  loose  and  thrown  on  the  opposite  side,  wisp  by  wisp. 

Another  invention  consists  of  a  solid  block,  or  sometimes  a  heavy 
wooden  frame,  from  which  protrude  upward,  in  close  rows,  stiff,  per- 
pendicular pins.  The  native,  man,  woman,  or  child,  sits  on  the 
ground,  Turk-fashion,  and  draws  the  wool  again  and  again  over  and 
between  these  pins,  a  process  which  picks  it  apart  and  fits  it  for  the 
spinning.  This  method  is  used  only  for  wool  which  is  of  more  than 
ordinary  length.  It  was  particularly  in  vogue  until  lately  in  those 
parts  of  Anatolia  where  the  material  is  prepared  for  working  in  the 
heavy  modern  carpets.  Europeans  have  now  established  two  mills  in 
Oushak,  each  of  which  cards  about  three  thousand  pounds  of  wool  a 
day.    They  have  practically  done  away  with  the  old  methods. 

The  yarn  hand-spun  by  the  shepherds,  in  the  open  air,  as 
described,  is  in  great  favor  with  the  manufacturers,  but  the  supply  is 
small,  since,  as  we  have  seen,  the  herdsmen,  using  only  the  selected 
wool,  keep  the  yarns  of  their  spinning  for  their  own  carpets.  In  a 
few  towns  there  are  shops  where  many  hands  are  employed,  but  even 
in  these  the  machinery  is  all  of  the  primitive  sort.  The  old-fashioned  dis- 
taff and  spindle  are  preferred,  and  the  use  of  a  wheel  for  spinning  is  as 
much  of  a  concession  as  the  Oriental  will  voluntarily  make  to  mechanical 
progress.  Attempts  have  been  made  from  time  to  time,  by  European 
firms  or  their  Eastern  agents,  to  establish  steam  mills  in  connection 
with  their  weaving  interests  at  Oushak  and  in  other  places.  The 
proposition  has  always  met  with  a  loud  protest  from  the  wool-workers 
of  the  district,  and  the  government,  in  paternal  regard  for  its  infant 
industry,  has  refused  to  lend  a  hand. 

The  yarn,  which  is  made  in  three  grades,  light  for  the  weft, 
medium  for  the  warp  and  heavy  for  the  piling — though  in  very  fine 

38 


MATERIALS 

carpets  the  light  grade  is  taken  for  pile — is  usually  purchased  by  the 
firms  for  which  the  carpets  are  being  made,  and  its  cost  checked  up 
against  the  master  of  the  looms,  to  be  deducted  from  the  money  due 
on  the  completion  of  the  work.  This  refers  only  to  districts  where 
the  entire  output  is  controlled  by  the  European  and  American  firms 
or  their  native  middlemen.  In  the  small  villages  inland,  the  native 
storekeeper,  of  whom  mention  has  been  made,  advances  the  money 
for  wool,  or  the  wool  itself,  to  his  less  prosperous  townsmen. 

The  use  of  goat's-hair  in  rugs  is  restricted  by  its  wiry  nature.  It 
is  apt  to  spin  poorly,  and  packs  unpleasantly  when  much  trod  upon. 
To  the  carpets  made  by  the  mountaineers,  who  employ  it  most,  it 
lends  a  certain  wild,  shaggy  appearance,  thoroughly  in  harmony  with 
their  strong  colors  and  crude  patterns.  Of  late  years,  experiments 
have  been  made  in  mixing  the  goat's-hair  with  wool,  but  even  thus  the 
traditional  obstinacy  of  the  goat  is  not  overcome,  and  the  Kulah  and 
Ak-hissar  mohairs  have  not  met  with  the  success  which  such  enterprise 
and  ingenuity  merit.  The  Angora  hair,  especially,  is  slippery  and 
unworkable.  There  grows,  however,  on  the  goats  raised  in  the 
lowlands  of  Asia  Minor,  the  sand  hills  of  Turkestan,  and  the  highlands 
of  Central  Asia,  a  fine,  silky  fleece  next  the  skin.  It  starts  in  the 
autumn,  and  if  not  cut  falls  out  before  spring.'  Then,  during  ten 
days  or  a  fortnight,  the  herd  are  subjected  to  the  most  thorough 
combing.  With  care  and  attention,  perhaps  half  or  three-quarters  of 
a  pound  of  this  down  can  be  obtained  from  each  animal.  From  the 
best  of  it  Kashmir  shawls  are  made,  and  its  use  in  carpet-weaving  is 


'  "  In  Tartary,  or  Mongolia,  the  Saiga  or  yellow  goat  of  Du  Halde  is  found,  the  hair  of  which  is 
mach  used  in  their  rugs,  and  there  also  wander  in  flocks  the  argali  or  wild  sheep  (the  moujlon  of 
Buffon)j  producing  the  brown-gray  wool  of  which  the  foundation  is  usually  made,  while  the  bactrian 
camel,  whose  habitat  is  in  the  wilds  of  Tartary,  affords  material  for  some  of  their  most  beautiful  speci- 
mens. The  camel  sheds  its  coat  annually,  in  the  course  of  a  few  days,  and  its  fleece  is  superior  to  that 
of  any  other  domestic  animal.  The  Usbek  Tartars,  moreover,  have  the  finest  wool  of  any  people,  those 
of  Southern  Persia  only  excepted,  for  they  feed  their  sheep  with  great  care  and  generally  under  cover, 
protecting  them  even  when  exposed,  as  we  do  our  horses." — Robinson's  "Eastern  Carpets." 

39 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

illustrated  in  the  finer  Tartar  fabrics — Tekkes,  Yomuds,  and  Bokhara 
prayer  rugs. 

Of  the  real,  straight  goat's-hair  which  can  be  utilized  in  piling 
carpets,  by  all  means  the  best  is  tYi^Jilik,  known  in  European  markets 
as  peloton  rouge,  and  sold  in  America  for  camel's-hair.  It  is  of  a 
light  chestnut  color,  and  is  used  without  dyeing,  to  produce  brown 
grounds,  as,  for  example,  in  the  Mosul  and  Hamadan  rugs. 

Only  on  the  plateaus  of  Eastern  Persia,  Afghanistan  and  Belu- 
chistan  are  camels  found  which  produce  a  hair  suitable  for  rug-weaving. 
They  are  shaggy  beasts,  but  the  undergrowth  of  their  coat  forms  a 
sort  of  fleece,  which,  however,  must  be  plucked  instead  of  sheared. 
The  processes  through  which  this  hair  passes,  to  fit  it  for  the  weaving, 
are  similar  to  those  employed  in  treating  wool. 

Of  silk,  little  need  be  said,  since  the  fabrics  made  of  it  are  not 
here  considered.  It  is  silk  the  world  over.  It  is  produced  in  vast 
quantity  in  many  districts  of  Persia,  Central  Asia  and  parts  of  Asia 
Minor.  In  Luristan  it  is  one  of  the  chief  exports.  In  some  sections, 
especially  in  middle  Asia,  the  mulberry  trees  upon  which  the  silk  worm 
breeds  grow  wild  in  forests  of  considerable  magnitude.  Among  the 
products  of  Samarkand  are  rugs  of  raw  silk.  Trial  was  made  at 
Oushak  of  like  material  for  heavy  carpets  resembling  the  woollen 
fabrics  in  size,  design,  and  colors.  It  met  with  small  success.  The 
plenitude  "of  silk  has  led  to  experiments  of  this  sort  in  other  Asia 
Minor  districts.  The  latest  has  been  in  Csesarea,  where  great 
numbers  of  silk  rugs  have  been  turned  out.  They  are  copied 
from  the  Persian  and  old  Ghiordes,  or  the  conceits  of  European 
designers  are  used.  The  American  market  is  as  a  result  flooded 
,/  with  these  copies.  They  can  be  detected  oftentimes  from  the 
fact  that  the  pile  inclines  toward  the  top  instead  of  the  bottom  of 
the  rug,  showing  that  they  have  been  worked  from  the  top  to  the 
bottom  of  the  design.     In  copying,  the  original  is  turned,  back  toward 

40 


rl 


birfw 


f*no  ?i; 


bjBfno/i 


fc> 


A.   M    EMFIAJIAN  &  CO. 


jmg^*TBrw-»-w— - 


Plate  V.    Bergamo  Rug 

5-4  X  4.7 

Loaned  by  Mr.  Robert  L.  Stevens 

This  rug,  one  of  the  few  specimens  of  the  antique  Bergamo,  represents 
Asia  Minor  design  at  its  best.  The  leaf  and  flower  forms  are  unmistakable,  but 
have  been  conventionalized  in  the  manner  referred  to  in  the  chapter  on  Design. 
In  only  two  respects,  so  far  as  one  is  able  to  discover,  is  the  Persian  influence 
at  all  perceptible.  There  is  something  of  Persian  realism  in  the  flowers  which 
are  stuck  about  the  small  medallions  at  either  end  of  the  field,  in  fact  this  same 
effect,  so  common  in  Asia  Minor  prayer  rugs,  is  found  in  many  fine  Persian 
fabrics  of  centuries  ago.  The  nomad  element  remains  in  the  small  separate 
flowers  in  the  field,  and  suggestion  of  a  latch-hook  is  had  in  the  jagged  edges 
of  the  long  branches  which  extend  from  the  central  medallion.  The  rug  is 
glorious  in  color,  and  its  combination  of  red,  blue,  yellow  and  pink  belongs  to 
an  age  that  is  bygone  in  the  textile  art  of  Anatolia. 


HA;LAn*^3 


A,  M.  ENFIAJIAN  &  CO. 


MATERIALS 

the  weaver,  to  facilitate  counting  the  number  of  stitches  in  each 
color.  The  pattern  rug  is  turned  upside  down  because,  the  prayer 
pattern  being  prevalent,  the  apex  of  the  arch  furnishes  a  central 
point  to  work  from,  and  the  weavers,  many  of  them  unskilled,  wish 
to  secure  this  as  early  as  possible  in  their  progress  with  the  fabric. 
The  best  silk  carpets  of  Persia,  patterned  after  the  renowned  fabrics 
of  two  or  three  centuries  ago,  are  wonderful,  but,  like  other  light  silk 
rugs,  they  are  meant  and  chiefly  used  for  hangings,  and  deservedly 
command  very  high  prices. 


V 

DYERS    AND     DYES 

COLOR  is  the  Orient's  secret  and  its  glory. 
These  dark-skinned  peoples,  lagging  so  far  backward 
along  the  pathway  of  civilization,  mastered  long  ago  the 
chromatic  mysteries  lurking  in  the  shrubs  of  their  deserts,  the  vines, 
leaves  and  blossoms  which  make  these  lands  radiant,  and  they  have 
guarded  this  subtle  knowledge  from  foreign  participation  with  greater 
care  and  jealousy  than  they  seem  to  have  exercised  for  their  bodily 
welfare,  or  their  place  among  races.  The  royal  purple  of  Tyre,  which 
the  Phoenicians  by  some  magic  won  from  the  molluscs  of  their  seas, 
is  virtually  obsolete  now.  Science  has  found,  in  the  refuse  of  facto- 
ries, gaudy  hues  to  serve  the  purpose  ;  but  the  old  dyes  of  the  East 
still  boast  a  splendor  and  lastingness  which  chemistry  cannot  coun- 
terfeit— a  permanence  emblematic  of  the  countries  where  alone  the 
marvel  of  their  compounding  has  been  understood. 

This  preeminence  in  dye-working  carries  with  it,  in  Oriental 
countries,  a  dignity  almost  akin  to  that  of  priesthood.  As  a  tree  is 
known  by  its  fruits,  the  dyer  has  place  among  his  fellows  by  his  hues. 
In  proportion  as  the  color  he  excels  in  is  valued  in  popular  judgment, 
the  dye-master  is  honored  in  his  town  ;  and  even  if  there  were  a  lotion 
which  could  obliterate  from  dress  and  cuticle  the  traces  of  his  trade, 

43 


DYERS     AND     DYES 

he  would  scorn  to  use  it.  His  color  is  the  badge  of  his  ancient  and 
honorable  calling,  dear  to  him  as  the  insignia  of  rank  to  the  soldier, 
or  churchly  black  to  the  ecclesiastic.  He  glories  in  being  bedaubed, 
and  the  shades  of  his  particular  color,  upon  hands,  feet  and  raiment, 
are  earnest  of  his  skill.  He  is  a  walking  sampler  of  his  dyes  ;  the 
proofs  of  his  proficiency  are  upon  him. 

Traversing  a  village  street  in  the  East,  you  are  aware  of  the 
dyer  from  afar  off.  Red,  or  green,  or  purple  from  head  to  heels,  he 
challenges  sight  when  he  is  yet  half  a  mile  distant.  There  is  the  pride 
of  a  sultan  in  his  carriage,  and  in  his  soul,  it  is  plain,  a  chromatic  joy 
which  religion  cannot  give.  He  is  a  fine  bit  of  color  against  the  tame 
background  of  the  town.  In  baggy  knee-nethers  and  white  camisole, 
his  head  all  swaddled  in  a  mighty  turban,  and  his  fat  leathern  pouch 
for  pipe,  tobacco,  knife,  money  and  trinkets,  belted  about  his  middle, 
he  is  a  type.  But  add  to  all  these  his  dye,  which  in  many  values  of 
the  same  color  illumines  him,  from  the  crown  of  his  turbaned  head  to 
the  tips  of  his  bare  toes,  and  he  is  a  radiant  being  such  as  Occidental 
civilization  has  not  known,  save  upon  circus  days. 

The  mind  of  this  worthy  is  pervaded  by  a  profound  and,  in  a 
way,  justifiable  belief  that  he  is  the  saving  clause  of  the  whole  carpet 
industry.  The  mainspring  of  his  life  is  the  conviction  that  he  really 
lends  to  the  fabrics  of  his  bailiwick,  and  of  his  native  land,  for  that 
matter,  all  they  possess  of  high  aesthetic  value.  In  his  own  view,  he 
is  the  uplifter  of  an  otherwise  slavish  and  mechanical  craft.  Through 
him  weaving  becornes  an  art,  and  all  the  processes,  from  first  to  last, 
are  merely  incidental  to  the  main  affair — his  coloring  of  the  yarns. 
So  he  dips  and  struts  his  complacent  life  away,  and  to  be  an  al  boyaji 
— a  dyer  of  reds — is  to  be  one  beloved  of  the  Prophet. 

In  great  rug-weaving  towns  the  dyers  are  many,  but  there  is 
work  for  them  all.  In  Oushak,  the  carpet  centre  of  Asia  Minor,  there 
are  probably  one  hundred  and  fifty,  each  with  his  specialty.    If  a  place 

43 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

be  blessed  with  a  stream  possessed  of  the  magic  solvent  property 
upon  which  the  excellence  of  Eastern  colors  so  largely  depends,  the 
dye-houses  are  ranged  close  beside  its  banks,  for  the  quality  of 
water  is  even  more  vital  in  the  mixing  of  dyes  than  it  has  been 
shown  to  be  in  the  washing  and  scouring  of  the  wool.  The  superiority 
of  one  water  over  another  has  been  established  by  empirical  processes 
continued  over  many  generations ;  and  tests  of  other  waters,  for  the 
solution  of  the  Oriental  dyes,  in  European  cities,  for  instance,  have 
resulted  in  an  utter  loss  of  spirit  in  the  color. 

But  this  must  not  be  construed  as  detracting  from  the  marvellous 
skill  of  the  dyers.  The  profession  is  hereditary  in  the  East,  and  the 
tricks  of  it  are  handed  down  as  almost  sacred  legacies  from  father  to 
son.  Each  dyer,  or,  better,  each  family  of  dyers,  has  some  peculiar  and 
secret  method  of  producing  different  shades,  and  there  was  sharp 
rivalry  until  the  European  came  upon  the  scene,  with  his  coal  tar  and 
his  chemical  formulae.*  Since  that  time  the  native  dyers  have  been 
a  brotherhood,  of  which  the  pride  of  every  member,  and  his  more 
than  reverence  for  his   colors  are  the  bond  and  the  creed.     Each 


'  "Aniline  blue  first  appeared  in  i860.  Less  than  a  year  afterward  it  took  ten  manufactories 
in  Germany,  England,  Italy  and  Switzerland,  to  produce  this  material. 

"  Whilst  the  manufacture  of  aniline  colors  thus  became  European,  their  consumption  spread 
still  farther,  and  now  could  be  observed  this  unique  fact  in  the  history  of  commerce  :  the  West  sup- 
plied the  East  with  coloring  matter,  sending  its  artificial  dyes  to  the  confines  of  the  globe,  to  China, 
to  Japan,  to  America  and  the  Indies — to  those  favored  climes  which  up  to  the  present  time  had  supplied 
the  manufactories  of  Europe  with  tinctorial  products.  This  was  a  veritable  revolution.  Chemistry,  vic- 
torious, dispossessed  the  sun  of  a  monopoly  which  it  had  always  enjoyed,  .  .  . 

"  This  reduction  in  the  price  of  aniline  colors  is  such  that  all  manufacturers  who  use  coloring 
matters  have  found  it  worth  while  to  replace  their  former  tinctorial  products  by  these  artificial  colors. 
Besides  this,  the  employment  of  these  products  has  greatly  simplified  the  formerly  very  complicated  and 
costly  operations  and  processes  of  dyeing,  so  that  an  apprentice  can  obtain  as  good  shades  as  a  skilled 
workman  ;  this  facility  of  application  has  certainly  not  less  contributed  to  the  success  of  coal  tar  col- 
oring matter,  than  the  richness  and  variety  of  the  shades.  .  .  . 

"  Everything,  therefore,  leads  one  to  imagine  that  ultimately  the  natural  will  yield  entirely  to 
the  artificial  coloring  matters.  This  revolution,  the  influence  of  which  will  be  most  important,  since 
U  will  liberate  for  the  production  of  food  many  hands  now  employed  in  industrial  operations,  would 
already  have  taken  place  if  the  artificial  colors  hitherto  discovered  were  as  solid  as  their  rivals." — 
Reimatis  ' '  Handbook  of  A  nilines, " 

44 


DYERS    AND     DYES 

knows  that  the  aniline  dyes  of  the  West  are  no  match  and  no  substi- 
tute for  his ;  that  many  of  the  glaring  hues  of  the  coal  tar  have 
no  durability,  that  in  a  carpet  thoroughly  wetted  they  will  run  and 
ruin  the  fabric,  while  his  own  handiwork  will  pass  through  a  lifetime 
of  exposure  to  sun  and  snow  and  rain,  and  grow  in  beauty  as  it  nears 
the  end  of  its  usefulness.  He  believes,  too,  that  the  European  is 
thoroughly  awake  to  this  difference.  The  great  fear  of  his  life  is  that 
by  craft  or  subsidy  the  intruder  will  learn  the  secret.  It  amounts  to  a 
mania  with  him,  and  in  all  likelihood  has  some  ground.  This  dread 
has  a  parallel  in  the  anxiety  felt  by  the  managers  of  foreign  carpet 
establishments,  who  lie  awake  at  night  in  fear  that  the  native  weavers 
have  stolen  or  are  planning  to  steal  the  newly  imported  European 
designs.  It  is  a  perfectly  reasonable  fear,  like  that  of  the  Oriental 
on  behalf  of  his  colors,  for  the  Western  patterns  have  great  vogue 
among  the  natives,  and  the  floors  of  the  best  houses  in  many  towns, 
in  Persia  as  well  as  Turkey,  are  covered  with  nightmares  of  West- 
ern color  and  device,  to  the  exclusion  of  home-made  fabrics. 

The  colonization  of  the  dyers  just  referred  to  is  solely  to  se- 
cure water  facilities,  and  not  for  the  purpose  of  defense  against  intru- 
sion. Where  the  town  water  supply  is  not  of  a  sort  suitable  for  dye- 
ing, systems  of  earthern  pipe  bring  water  from  some  more  or  less  re- 
mote stream  in  the  hills,  and  discharge  it  into  a  giant  basin  in  the 
middle  of  a  square  set  apart  by  the  municipality  for  the  purpose.  On 
the  four  sides  of  this  square — boya  khaneh — the  dyers  have  their 
shops,  with  the  all-important  water  in  plenty  just  outside  their  doors. 
Dirty,  ill-scented  establishments  they  are,  too — long,  low  buildings, 
with  front  rooms  which  do  duty  as  offices  and  sometimes  as  bazaars 
for  the  vending  of  small  articles.  In  the  rear  rooms,  in  long  rows, 
stand  twenty-five  or  thirty  huge  earthern  jars,  for  the  dying  solutions, 
and  a  few  deep  copper  kettles,  in  which  the  boiling  is  done. 

Passing  from  jar  to  jar,  the  dyer  and  his  helpers,  if  his  trade  be 

4S 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

extensive  enough  to  require  more  than  one  pair  of  hands,  dip  the 
great  skeins  into  one  after  another  of  the  solutions,  hanging  each  on 
a  hook  above  the  dye-jar  to  drain,  before  it  is  passed  on  to  further 
immersion.  It  is  an  axiom  that  to  secure  the  best  results  dye  should 
never  be  wrung  from  the  skein,  as  this  causes  uneven  distribution. 
This  system  of  successive  dippings  in  several  colors  is  one  of  the 
dye-master's  secrets — the  overlaying  of  color  upon  color,  a  blending, 
accomplished  in  the  wool. 

The  great  display  of  skill,  after  the  actual  decocting  and  mixing 
of  the  fluids,  lies  in  accurate  estimation  of  the  length  of  time  that  a 
yarn  should  be  subjected  to  each  solution.  It  is  upon  precisely  the 
same  principle,  and  altogether  as  delicate  and  important  a  task,  as 
the  timing  of  a  photographic  plate.  Away  at  the  back  of  each  shop 
is  a  ladder  leading  from  the  dye-room  to  the  roof,  where  the  yarns 
are  hung  to  dry.  How  long  a  dyed  skein  should  hang  in  the  sun  is 
another  question  of  moment.  Passing  through  the  square,  on  a 
bright  day,  you  may  see  the  dyers,  sitting  on  the  roofs  of  their  es- 
tablishments, staring  at  the  suspended  skeins.  As  long  as  the  yarn 
hangs  there,  the  master  stands  sentinel.  There  is  a  particular  instant 
when  the  sun's  work  is  done,  and  done  properly.  When  it  comes,  it 
finds  the  dyer  on  guard,  and  he  hurries  the  skein  to  cover  in  a  twink- 
ling. A  minute  too  soon,  or  a  minute  too  late,  and  the  rest  of  his 
professional  existence  would  be  **  fast  gray." 

All  these  complexities  of  his  craft  this  accomplished  artisan  car- 
ries in  his  head.  He  keeps  no  tell-tale  book  of  recipes.  In  a  frame 
in  the  outer  room  are  displayed  the  different  tints  of  which  he  is 
master.  The  number  of  them  is  bewildering.  It  is  not  unusual  for 
an  al  boyaji  to  be  skilled  in  some  hundreds  of  shades  of  red,  any  one 
of  which  he  can  set  about  compounding  at  a  moment's  notice,  with- 
out thought  of  reference  to  any  "aids"  or  "authorities." 

The  price  he  sets  upon  his  work  is  small  enough.     The  country 

46 


DYERS    AND     DYES 

people  pay  the  dyer's  charges  in  wool,  but  where  money  is  the 
medium,  the  cost  of  dyeing  in  the  most  expensive  red  is  only  about 
twelve  cents  to  the  pound,  for  blues  seven  or  eight,  and  other  colors 
as  low  as  five.  The  dyer  of  blacks  is  at  the  foot  of  the  craft.  The  I 
prices  are  stationary,  and  competition  never  takes  the  demoralizing 
form  of  "  cut  rates."  When  employed  upon  salary,  a  competent  dyer 
receives  about  ten  dollars  a  month  and  boards  himself.  An  assistant 
— not  by  any  means  a  tyro  at  the  work — can  be  had  for  half  that 
sum.     Women  seldom  take  any  part  in  the  dyeing. 

It  is  apparent  from  the  condition  of  the  pile  in  old  rugs,  that 
some  dyes  corrode  and  rot  the  yarn,  and  others  preserve   it.     An  ^ 
Eastern  dyer,  if  blindfolded,  can  "read"  the  pattern  of  an  antique 
carpet  by  the  touch,  as  accurately  as  a  blind  man  reads  his  raised-let- 
ter Bible.     Blacks  seem  to  be  most  corrosive,  and  red,  of  all  the  other  ^ 
dyes,  most  preservative.' 

The  basic  elements  of  the  dyers'  "  materia  "  are  known  to  almost 
every  Oriental,  for  they  grow  in  the  home  fields,  and  great  work  is 
made  of  their  cultivation,  gathering  and  sale,  though  the  new  genera- 
tion is  being  educated  to  use  the  dyes  of  Vienna  and  Berlin.  The 
shepherds  and  other  inhabitants  of  remote  districts  make  for 
themselves  the  few  simple  colors  needed  in  their  rough  carpets,  but 
of  the  methods  of  compounding  for  more  delicate  and  fanciful 
shades,  the  every-day  Oriental  knows  nothing,  and  there  are  hun- 
dreds of  materials,  growths  of  their  own  localities,  which  the  dyers 
gather  and  convert  into  coloring  agents,  the  precise  value  and  use  of 
which  are,  to  the  common  herd,  among  the  mysteries. 

The  distinctive  feature  of  the  old  Eastern  dyeing  system  was 
that  nearly  every  tingent  was  of  vegetable  or  animal  origin,  and  that 

•  In  parts  of  Persia  and  India  dyers  habitually  wash  the  yarns  in  a  solution  of  lime  before  apply- 
ing the  dyes.  The  object  of  this  is  to  increase  the  brilliancy  of  the  colors,  but  its  principal  effect  is  to 
make  the  yarn  brittle  and  materially  lessen  its  wearing  quality.  Where  this  treatment  has  been  em- 
ployed, an  expert  can  usually  detect  it  by  feeling  the  pile  of  the  rug. 

47 


^^ 


V 

ru/  ORIENTAL     RUGS 


^similar  ingredients  were  employed  for  mordants  or  fixatives.  The 
treatment  of  the  yarn  with  borax,  saltpeter,  tartar,  copperas  and  the 
like  had  not  been  known.     The  native  dyers  held  to  the  merits  of  the 

,  old-fashioned  mordants — valonia,  pomegranate-rind,  sumac,  divi-divi, 
and  the  barks  of  different  trees,  from  which  they  had  for  so  long  ob- 
tained such  renowned  results. 

In  some  newly  made  fabrics,  notably  those  from  out-of-the-way 
parts  of  the  East,  the  dyes  are  found  to  be  thoroughly  up  to  the  old 
standard,  but  in  most  quarters  they  have  been  sadly  debauched. 
The  introduction  of  the  chemical  mordants  was  the  first  fruit  of 
increased  foreign  demand,  and  first  step  in  the  decline  of  quality. 
The  Eastern  governments  warred  energetically  against  it.  In  one 
part  of  Persia  it  was  ordered  long  ago  that  a  dyer  convicted  of  using 
aniline  preparations  should  have  his  right  hand  cut  off  by  way  of 
punishment.  The  mandate  seems,  however,  not  to  have  made  a  very 
deep  impression.  The  loud,  flaring,  unnatural  colors  continued  to 
appear  in  plenty  in  rug  consignments,  and  passed  in  this  country  for 
vegetable  with  all  save  the  few  who  could  detect  their  falsity.  In 
spite  of  this,  mendacious  salesmen  declared,' in  guarantee  of  good  faith, 
that  the  law  was  enforced  to  the  letter. 

Here  is  what  may,  I  think,  be  considered  good  authority  for 
declaring  that  it  was  not  obeyed  at  all.  It  is  an  excerpt  from  the  edict 
issued  by  the  Shah  of  Persia,  on  January  ist,  1900.  The  necessity  for 
wide  distribution  of  the  law  throughout  the  realm  and  for  its  enforce- 
ment upon  the  notice  of  foreigners  as  well  as  natives,  resulted  in  its 
being  printed  in  French  as  well  as  in  the  Persian  dialect.  It  prohibited 
several  things.  I  have  translated  and  transcribed,  from  the  copy  given 
me  in  Tabriz,  only  such  portions  as  bear  upon  the  matter  of  rugs. 

In  the  name  of  the  Merciful  God ! 
Let  thanks  be  given  to  that  Supreme  Being,  and  praise  to  His  Sacred  Prophet, 
to  the  Holy  Family  and  to  their  Companions. 

48 


DYERS     AND     DYES 

We,  Mozafifer  ed  Din,  King  of  Kings,  Absolute  Sovereign  of  the  Empire 
of  Persia, 

Whereas  upon  different  occasions  Our  Glorious  Father,  Nasser  ed  Din 
Shah,  whose  memory  is  illustrious  and  revered,  desiring  to  maintain  the  fine 
quality  of  Persian  carpets,  the  fame  of  which  is  universal,  forbade  the  importa- 
tion of  aniline  dyes,  which  certain  persons  use  to  give  a  meretricious  coloring 
to  carpets.* 

And  whereas  it  has  come  to  Our  knowledge  that  these  prohibitions,  as  well 
as  some  others,  are  frequently  disobeyed  by  Persian  subjects  as  well  as  stran- 
gers, and  since  it  is  necessary  therefore  to  restate  them,  and  at  the  same  time 
give  power  to  punish  whoever  shall  violate  them  hereafter.  For  all  these  rea- 
sons We  utter  the  present  law : 

Article  I 

It  is  forbidden  to  bring  into  the  kingdom  : 

Aniline  dyes,  whether  in  dry  or  liquid  form,  as  well  as  all  coloring  materials, 
whether  dry  or  liquid,  into  which  aniline  enters  as  a  component. 

Article  IV 

Any  importation,  likewise  any  exportation  or  attempt  at  exportation, 
made  either  in  violation  of  Article  I  of  this  law,  shall  be  followed  by  seizure 
and  confiscation  of  the  goods. 

Furthermore,  if  the  goods  prohibited  from  entrance  or  exit  have  not  been 
declared  or  regularly  presented  at  the  office  of  customs,  or  if  the  said  goods 
have  been  hidden  among  other  goods,  or  concealed  in  any  manner,  the  persons 
transporting  them  shall  incur  jointly  and  without  any  reference  to  their  claims 
upon  one  another,  a  fine  equal  to  the  value  of  the  goods,  independently  of  the 
seizure  and  confiscation  of  the  prohibited  articles,  as  well  as  of  those  which 
have  served  to  conceal  them. 

In  case  of  importation  or  exportation  by  routes  not  running  to  a  custom 
house,  or  at  a  point  upon  the  coast  where  no  office  of  customs  exists,  the  fine 
shall  be  double  the  value  of  the  merchandise,  and  the  means  of  transportation, 
ships,  boats,  beasts  of  burden  or  vehicles,  also  the  other  goods  imported  or  ex- 
ported at  the  same  time,  shall  be   confiscated.     Furthermore,   the  persons. 


'  "  The  importation  of  aniline  colors,  whose  insidious  brightness  was  tending  to  seriously  dam- 
age the  trade,  has  been  prohibited,  but  it  is  still  advisable  for  an  intending  purchaser  to  apply  a  wet 
cloth  to  test  the  fastness  of  the  colors  before  concluding  the  bargain." — E.  Treacher  Collins  :  "  In 
the  Kingdom  of  the  Shah." 

49 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

whether  authors  or  accomplices,  sharing  in  the  offense,  shall  be  punished  by  a 
year's  imprisonment. 

Article  V 

The  means  of  transport,  ships,  boats  or  beasts  of  burden,  which  have  been 
used  in  the  importation  or  exportation  of  prohibited  goods,  are  specially  liable 
and  subject  to  seizure  as  security  for  fines  incurred  by  virtue  of  the  preceding 
article,  and  in  default  of  payment  of  the  said  fines  within  thirty-one  days  after 
the  discovery  of  the  offense,  they  shall  be  sold  for  the  purpose  of  obtaining  the 
sum  due. 

Article  VI 

Persons  against  whom  it  shall  be  proven,  in  any  way  whatsoever,  that  they 
have  participated  in  the  importation  or  exportation  of  prohibited  goods, 
whether  in  ordering,  buying  or  selling  such  goods,  or  arranging  for  their  trans- 
portation, or  in  any  other  way,  shall  be  subject  to  the  same  penalty  as  those 
who  have  directly  violated  the  provisions  of  this  law. 

The  value  of  the  confiscations  and  the  amount  of  the  fines  thus  incurred 
may  be  levied  upon  the  movable  or  immovable  property  of  the  offenders. 

Proceedings  taken  under  this  act  must  be  officially  brought  to  the  notice 
of  the  defendants  within  two  years,  at  latest,  from  the  commission  of  the 
offense. 

Article  VII 

Articles  of  merchandise  seized  or  confiscated  by  virtue  of  this  law  shall 
be  sold  for  the  benefit  of  the  Imperial  Treasury,  with  the  exception  : 

I. — Of  aniline  colors.  .  .  .  Such  articles  shall  always  be  burned  or 
destroyed  publicly  no  later  than  the  day  following  the  seizure,  in  the  presence 
of  the  chief  of  customs,  of  the  governor  or  his  representative,  and  of  such  other 
persons  as  it  shall  be  possible  to  gather  together.  A  certification  of  the  de- 
struction shall  be  made  immediately  and  signed  by  all  the  persons  present.  A 
copy  thereof  shall  be  sent  to  the  person  upon  whose  complaint  the  seizure  was 
made,  and  another  sent  immediately  to  the  chief  of  the  customs  service  at 
Teheran. 

Article  VIII 

Any  agent  or  employee  of  the  government,  any  collector  of  customs  or 
employee  thereof,  who  shall  be  convicted  of  having  permitted,  tolerated  or 

50 


DYERS     AND     DYES 

favored  in  any  manner  whatsoever  the  importation  or  exportation  of  prohib- 
ited articles,  shall  be  punished  by  imprisonment  for  a  period  not  less  than  one 
and  not  more  than  three  years,  according  to  the  gravity  of  the  offense;  and, 
moreover,  he  shall  be  liable,  by  his  goods  and  chattels,  movable  and  immov- 
able, for  the  payment  of  a  sum  equal  to  or  double  the  amount  of  the  fines  and 
confiscation  provided  in  the  preceding  articles  against  the  authors  of  frauds 
of  this  sort. 

Article  IX 

Rewards  in  money,  to  be  deducted  from  the  amount  of  fines  and  confisca- 
tions, may  be  given  by  the  Central  Administration  of  Customs  to  agents  and 
employees  who  shall  have  discovered  or  furnished  proof  of  violation  of  this 
law,  and  also  to  any  person  who  shall  have  given  to  the  administration  infor- 
mation leading  to  the  discovery  of  such  violation. 

Article  X 

All  violations  of  this  law  must  be  established  by  an  authentic  certificate 
drawn  up  with  all  possible  promptness,  by  at  least  two  employees,  and  this 
proof  shall  be  forwarded  with  all  possible  haste  to  the  office  of  the  customs 
bureau,  which  shall  have  power  to  collect  the  fines,  the  amount  of  confisca- 
tions, and  to  exact  the  corporeal  penalties  incurred.  One  of  the  copies  of  the 
proces  verbal  shall  be  sent  to  the  chief  offender,  who  must  sign  it  or  acknowl- 
edge its  receipt,  and  the  other  copy  shall  be  sent  as  soon  as  possible  to  the 
ofiicer  of  customs,  who  alone  shall  have  power  to  grant  a  reduction  of  penal- 
ties, if  there  be  circumstances  which  warrant  measures  of  clemency. 

Article  XI 

This  law  shall  take  effect  three  months  after  the  day  of  its  signing  by  Us. 

We  order  that  it  be  printed  in  all  the  newspapers  of  the  Empire  and 
that  copies  be  sent  to  the  Ambassadors,  Ministers  or  Charges  d'Affaires 
accredited  by  Us,  and  further  order  Our  Sadr  Azame  to  take  the  measures 
necessary  to  assure  its  execution. 

Given  at  the  Palace  of  Teheran,  the  15  th  day  of  the  month  Ramazan,  in 
the  year  13 17  of  the  Hegira,  Jan'y  i,  1900. 

MOZAFFER  ED  DIN. 

By  the  Shah,  The  Sadr  Azame,  Amine  Sultan. 

SI 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

How  great  a  supply  of  Persian  rugs,  dyed  with  anilines,  remained 
to  be  disposed  of,  it  is  impossible  to  say,  but  the  Persian  government, 
through  its  Belgian  custom-house  officials,  at  whose  suggestion  the 
edict  was  said  to  have  been  issued,  enforced  the  prohibition  to  the  let- 
ter. After  the  law  took  effect,  several  large  consignments  of  anilines 
were  seized  and  destroyed. 

The  government's  step  was  a  radical  one.  That  it  was  deemed 
necessary  is  made  plain  by  the  fact  that  this  law  was  the  first  promul- 
gated by  the  Shah  Mozaffer  after  his  accession. 

The  best  expression  of  the  dyer's  skill  is  undoubtedly  found,  as 
has  been  said,  in  reds.  In  what  apparently  contradictory  colors  the 
yarns  are  dipped,  to  lay  a  foundation  for  the  ultimate  shades  of  red,  is 
past  finding  out.  Madder,  the  root  of  rubia  tinctorum,  ground  and 
boiled,  is  a  basis  for  a  multitude  of  the  reds  of  the  Eastern  carpets. 
Its  flowers,  too,  are  steeped,  and  the  liquid  made  from  them  fer- 
mented, to  secure  some  extraordinary  shades  of  this  color.  The  red 
most  common  in  Persian  fabrics  is  made  by  combining  alum-water, 
grape-juice  and  a  decoction  of  madder,  and  drying  the  yarn  in  a  par- 
ticularly moderate  sun.  Many  degrees  of  redness,  from  pale  pink  to 
intense  and  glowing  scarlet,  can  be  made  from  madder  alone,  by 
different  treatments,  and  in  combination  with  other  materials  it  plays 
a  part  in  half  the  hues  which  appear  in  Eastern  carpets.  One  of 
the  oldest  of  Oriental  dyes  is  sheep's-blood,  from  which,  by  secret 
method,  a  rich  and  enduring  vermilion  is  obtained. 

Another  material  for  deep  red  is  kermes,  a  variety  of  coccus 
insect  found  upon  oak  trees  about  the  Mediterranean.  The  normal 
color  produced  from  it  is  a  rich  carmine.     It  is  one  of  the  oldest  of 

S3 


DYERS     AND     DYES 

Oriental  dyes,  but  it  has  been  supplanted,  in  a  measure,  by  the 
Mexican  cochineal,  which,  after  the  conquest  of  Mexico,  and  the  im- 
portation of  its  product  into  Spain  and  thence  into  the  Orient,  took 
its  place  as  an  Eastern  dye.  This  is  used  for  the  most  flaming  reds,  as 
well  as  in  combination  with  other  materials  to  give  quality  to  tamer 
shades.  It  is  more  brilliant  than  the  native  kermes,  but  the  Eastern 
dyers  say,  not  so  permanent.  With  the  old  vegetable  mordants,  it 
produces  a  comparatively  fast  dye.  In  dilution  with  madder  it  pro- 
vides scarlet,  cherry  and  various  degrees  of  pink.  There  is  a  min- 
eral kermes,  an  artificial  sulphite  of  mercury,  which  borrowed  its 
name  to  fit  its  brilliant  color,  and  is  not  to  be  confounded  with  the 
insect  dye.  In  recent  years,  many  reds  have  had  for  basis  the  dye- 
woods — Campeche  wood,  Brazil  wood,  and  others — which  have  been 
engrafted  upon  the  Oriental  system.  Rich  pink  shades  are  often 
had  from  the  rochella  or  orchil,  a  lichen  which  grows  on  the  rocks 
around  the  Eastern  seas.  Singular  reds  are  also  obtained  from 
onion  skins,  ivy  berries,  beets  and  a  multitude  of  other  plants,  of 
which  only  the  dyer  knows  the  secrets. 

The  great  majority  of  Eastern  blues  have  for  a  basis  indigo, 
which  for  the  hundreds  of  shades  used  is  compounded  with  almost 
every  other  dyeing  material  known  in  the  Orient.  In  Persia,  dyeing 
with  indigo  is  accounted  as  high  an  art  as  is  the  science  of  reds  in 
Turkey  and  Bokhara.' 

The  principal  yellows  are  obtained  from  Persian  berries,  which 
although  they  are  indigenous  to  Asia  Minor,  attain  a  greater  size  and 


•  "It  seems  strange  that  processes  should  be  lost  for  producing  articles,  by  a  people  who 
actually  continue  to  manufacture  without  interruption  the  very  objects  into  which  these  processes 
enter.  Yet  we  repeatedly  find  such  a  result  occurring  in  the  history  of  civilization.  There  never  hat  Kr 
been  a  time,  for  ages,  when  the  Persians  have  not  been  manufacturing  rugs,  during  all  which  period 
they  have  been  manufacturing  their  own  dyes;  and  yet  within  forty  or  fifty  years  the  secret  of  making 
the  superb  blue  color  which  distinguishes  the  finest  examples  of  old  Persian  tiles,  illuminated  manu-  • 
scripts  and  rugs,  has  fallen  into  disuse,  and  no  one  seems  now  able  to  reproduce  it."— 5.  (7.  W.  Ben- 
jamin;  "  Persia  and  the  Persians." 

53 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

a  more  pronounced  yellow  color  in  Persia;  from  turmeric,  the  extract 
of  the  East  Indian  root  curcuma,  and  from  saffron  and  sumac  roots. 
>'The  turmeric  yellow  is  not  of  itself  a  thoroughly  fast  color,  but  im- 
parts a  life  to  other  shades  when  used  in  combination.  It  serves  as  a 
'  mordant  for  certain  dyes,  and  owing  to  its  instant  change  to  brown, 
when  brought  into  contact  with  any  alkaline  substance,  is  used  in 
chemistry  as  a  test  for  alkalis.  Some  yellow  shades  are  produced 
also  by  combination  of  the  wood  dyes  and  saffron  roots  and  flowers 
and  a  variety  of  ochra  plant. 

Indigo,  in  combination  with  the  yellows,  furnishes  most  of  the 
greens  used  by  the  old  native  dyers.  With  the  buckthorn,  or 
rhamnus,  it  produces  the  Chinese  green,  and  with  turmeric  and  the 
Persian  berries,  a  wide  range  of  intermediate  greens,  both  bright  and 
dull. 

The  deepest  shades  of  brown  are  obtained  by  dyeing  with  madder 
^  over  indigo,  as  the  deep  Persian  blue  is  secured  from  applying  indigo 
over  pure  madder.  Wood  brown  and  camel's-hair  brown  result  from 
the  use  of  madder  with  the  yellows.  In  Anatolia,  this  has  been  ac- 
complished lately  by  use  of  the  orange  aniline  colors.  Gallnuts  also 
enter  largely  into  the  making  of  the  browns. 

The  densest  blacks,  which  are  little  used  except  for  outlining 
patterns,  and  defining  border  stripes,  are  made  chiefly  from  iron  fil- 
ings, with  vinegar  and  rind  of  pomegranate  and  sometimes  with  the 
addition  of  Campeche  wood.  Gray  shades  are  secured  by  the  use  of 
Smyrna  gallnuts. 

The  schedule  of  purples  is  one  of  the  richest  in  the  whole  realm 
of  Eastern  dyes.  The  different  red  ingredients  mentioned  above  are 
used  in  combination  with  indigo,  and  the  dye  woods  and  the  rochella 
tincturus  play  a  large  part.  The  thoroughness  with  which  the  Ori- 
ental dyers  have  canvassed  the  whole  field  of  substances  to  discover  a 
new  material  for  establishing  or  modifying  colors  is  shown  in  the  com- 

54 


DYERS     AND     DYES 

bination  for  a  popular  shade  of  violet.  It  starts  with  a  mixture  of 
milk  and  water,  in  exact  proportions,  then  madder  is  added  in  certain 
dilution,  and  lastly,  the  whole  is  converted  by  sour  grape  juice.  A 
great  many  shades  of  purple,  heliotrope,  lavender  and  the  like  are 
secured  from  the  bodies  of  marine  insects  and  molluscs.  ^ 

This  outline  will  serve  to  indicate  the  honesty  which  dominates 
the  old  Oriental  coloring.  It  can  only  suggest  the  great  variety 
of  materials  employed,  and  the  consummate  skill  required  in  the 
blending.  Vine  leaves,  mulberry  leaves,  myrobalans,  laurel  and 
angelica  berries,  artichokes,  thistles,  capers,  ivy  and  myrtle — all  things 
that  grow  within  the  ken  of  the  dyer — have  been  tried  to  their  utmost 
as  possible  color-makers  and  color-changers.  Many  of  the  growths 
are  cultivated  by  the  dyers  upon  their  small  acreage,  in  the  intervals 
of  their  momentous  labor  in  the  shops. 


VI 

Plate  VI.    Antique  Persian  Rug  (Silk) 

6.II  X  4.10 

From  the  Marquand  Collection 

'  While  the  color  arrangement — -wine-red  ground  and  green  border— is  that 
common  to  Isaphan  carpets  of  the  Sixteenth  Century,  the  design  is  of  an  en- 
tirely different  nature  from  those  emanating  from  the  capital.  It  is  far  more 
likely  a  product  of  middle  or  northern  Persia,  for  in  it,  though  unlike  in  colora- 
tion, may  easily  be  traced  kinship  to  the  row  designs  of  Feraghan,  which  we 
know  under  the  names  of  Herati  and  Guli  Hinnai.  In  the  alternating  rosette 
and  palmette  in  the  border  there  is  clear  prophesy  of  the  Herat  border.  There 
are  certain  textile  characteristics  suggestive  of  Sehna,  as  the  shape  also  is,  but, 
as  I  have  said  in  notes  upon  the  Marquand  collection,  it  is  impossible  to  make 
hard  and  fast  local  classification  of  a  rug  woven  when  Persia  was  in  a  state  of 
such  continual  change,  and  artisans  in  large  numbers  were  being  transferred 
from  place  to  place,  taking  with  them  their  methods  and  designs.  The  work 
may  have  been  done  at  Kashan  or  perchance  in  Resht,  but  that  it  foreshadows 
the  Feraghan  and  Sehna  of  to-day  there  is  little  doubt. 

eauty.     Ever\ 

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A.  M.  ENFIAJIAN  8c  C<X 


DESIGN 

regularities,  either  in  drawing  or  coloring,  to  be  observed  in  almost 
every  Oriental  carpet,  and  invariably  in  Turkoman  carpets,  are  sel- 
dom accidental,  the  usual  deliberate  intention  being  to  avert  the  evi) 
eye  and  insure  good  luck." 

This  utterance,  which,  coming  from  so  profound  a  source,  may 
be  looked  upon  as  revelation  rather  than  poetic  license,  enables  the 
lover  of  Eastern  fabrics  to  weave  for  himself,  from  the  curious  and 
seductive  shapes  and  the  soothing  harmonies  which  they  embody,  a 
bright  and  altogether  exalted  picture  of  the  mental  and  spiritual  life 
of  the  Orient.  Abhorring  a  vacuum,  the  Eastern,  at  his  highest 
mark  of  artistic  capability,  filled  the  blank  space  which  was  his  bit  of 
eternity  with  a  fulness  of  warmth  and  beauty  which  spoke  for  him 
then,  and  as  an  enduring  fabric  speaks  for  him  now,  as  a  man  whose 
intimations  of  a  glad  immortality  never  ceased  until  his  fingers  grew 
weary  at  life's  loom,  and  the  earth  claimed  him. 

But  study  of  the  Oriental  of  earlier  times,  by  the  carpets  which  he 
made,  must  needs  be  mainly  a  study  of  the  upper  class,  of  the  nobles 
in  whose  palaces  and  by  whose  designers  and  weavers  the  finer  pieces 
were  produced.  Exhibition,  publication,  expert  analysis  and  compar- 
ison of  the  oldest  and  most  perfect  of  these  carpets,  which  in  any 
country  and  any  era  must  have  taken  rank  as  art  productions,  have 
shed  invaluable  light  on  the  course  of  artistic  impulses  in  the  East, 
three  or  four  centuries  ago.  They  have  revealed  in  its  most  impres- 
sive phase  the  high  seriousness  of  Eastern  races.  They  have  opened 
a  field  of  study  which  becomes  wider  and  richer  with  every  moment 
of  consideration. 

In  view  of  the  teachings  of  these  famous  fabrics  it  must  for  the 
more  popular  purpose  be  accounted  a  misfortune  that  time  has  left 
few  if  any  authentic  examples  of  the  commoner  rugs  of  extremely  old 
date.  Actual  comparison,  therefore,  of  the  fabrics  exported  from  the 
East  and  sold  in  American  markets   to-day,  with  those   made   for 

S7 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

every-day  use  hundreds  of  years  ago,  is  practically  out  of  the  ques- 
tion ;  but  so  closely  do  the  very  fine  modern  rugs,  particularly  some 
of  the  Persians,  preserve  features  of  the  wonderful  old  carpets  in  the 
European  collections,  that  it  is  fair  to  presume  that  the  rougher  and 
more  common  varieties  cannot  differ  greatly,  in  color  and  design, 
from  those  of  the  olden  time. 

There  was,  authorities  declare,  a  period  of  climax  in  the  highest 
order  of  Eastern  carpets ;  and  with  equal  candor  they  concede  that 
even  prior  to  the  decline  noticeable  in  our  own  time,  there  had  been 
a  marked  degeneration,  extending  possibly  over  centuries.  It  was 
first  manifest,  they  say,  in  the  decadence  of  the  pure  curve,  in  a  ten- 
dency to  leave  broad  surfaces  of  ground  color,  in  an  abandonment  of 
the  perfect  coordination  which  had  given  poetic  unity  and  a  de- 
lightful atmosphere  of  completeness.  Then,  from  many  of  the  car- 
pets disappeared  the  central  design  so  essential  to  artistic  composi- 
tion. Rectilinear  drawing  of  the  vines  and  creepers  banished  the 
softness  which  had  been  the  chief  charm  of  the  Persian  fabrics.  The 
floral  patterns  gained  in  geometry  as  they  lost  in  grace.  Over  all 
was  evident  a  relapse  from  exalted  artistic  conditions,  a  barrenness  of 
life,  a  decline  of  ambition.  The  exact  period  of  climax  has  not  yet 
been  fixed.  For  most  of  the  superfine  antiques  which  remain  in  ex- 
istence, the  critics  hesitate  to  assign  a  date,  or  even  to  point  out 
definitely  the  locality  of  manufacture. 

It  seems  safe  to  conclude  that  decay  in  art,  if  it  was  decay, 
was  contemporary  with  national  decline:  that  when  the  Eastern 
nations  passed  out  of  apogee  the  record  of  the  transition  was  writ- 
ten on  their  fabrics.  But  there  are  those  who  deny  the  decadence, 
who  maintain  that  the  perfection  reached  in  these  weavings  was 
foreign,  not  Eastern ;  that  it  was  the  sacrifice  of  native  truth  and 
originality  to  strange  artistic  tenets.  They  hold  that  the  standard 
was  meretricious,  and   that  what  is   termed  decadence  was  only  a 

S8 


DESIGN 

natural  and  wholesome  reversion  to  older  and  more  authentic 
Oriental  types;  a  return  from  Italian  schooling  to  the  ancient  spirit 
and  designs. 

Commenting  upon  a  piece  displayed  at  the  Vienna  Exposition 
in   1889,  which  showed  in  a  marked  degree  the  tendency  to  rude 
rectilinear  treatment,  while  preserving  much  of  the  Persian  richness, 
a  celebrated  European  authority  said :  "  Have  we  in  the  peculiar 
floral  design  before  us,  which  is  so  different  from  the  Persian  style 
of  the  fifteenth  century,  an  example  of  ancient  or  modern  industry  ? 
Is  it  the  coarseness  of  an  early  style,  or  is  it  the  weakness  of  decay- 
ing art,  which  meets  us  here  in  a  garb  of  so  little  attractiveness  ? " 
This  halting  of  one  so  thoroughly  informed  illustrates  the  tantalizing 
doubt  which  pervades  the  whole  study  of  textile  design,  and  which 
constitutes  perhaps  its  greatest  charm.     But  if  it  be  true  that  "sym- 
bolism  goes   out   as   art  reproduction   increases,"  that  the   Persian 
masterpieces,  beautiful  though  they  be,  are  false  to  Oriental  theory, 
are  merely  imitations  of  the  ornate  Italian  method,  supplemented  by 
all  of  grace  and  richness  that  the  Persians  could  bring  to  it,  then  the 
return,  evident  in  later  fabrics,  to  rude  masses  of  color,  and  bolder 
and  older  designs,  must  be  looked  upon  merely  as  a  final  triumph  of 
the  inherent  over  the  acquired.     And  it  must  give  to  all  the  ruder 
Oriental  fabrics  a  value  which  has  been  overlooked  in  them,  if  not 
denied  to  them,  by  the  apostles  of  the  "high  school."     If  the  general 
declaration  that  there  is  a  symbolic  meaning  in  all  carpet  designs  be 
well  founded,  the  fabrics  of  the  commoner  class  must  share  in  it. 
And  if  it  be  also  true  that  what  the  critics  who  measure  all  values  by 
Western  [standards  call  decadence  is  really  a  reversion  to  genuine, 
though  perhaps  "  semi-barbaric,"  Oriental  forms,  then  the  rugs  made 
by  the  native  for  his  own  use,  necessarily  free  from  the  influences 
which  invaded  the  art  of  the  palace,  must  be  considered  a  pure  type, 
and  expressive  of  Eastern  meanings.     It  is  this  class  of  rugs  that  we 

S9 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

get  to-day,  or  rather  did  get,  before  the  West  began  its  mercantile 
invasion  of  Asia. 

Freest  of  all  from  outside  modifying  influences  are,  we  must  be- 
lieve, the  carpets  made  by  the  nomads.  Far  below  the  high-class 
Persians  as  exponents  of  artistic  status,  the  products  of  the  mountain 
districts  and  steppes  outrank  many  of  those  in  point  of  consistency, 
and  are  to  be  prized  as  truthful  reflections  of  the  native  life  and 
character.  Perhaps  less  of  credit  is  to  be  accorded  to  the  nomad 
weavers  for  having  adhered  stubbornly  to  their  distinctive  colors  and 
patterns,  since,  inhabiting  the  deserts  and  waste  places,  courting  and 
knowing  no  contact  with  society  other  than  their  own,  they  have  met 
with  no  temptation  to  vary  the  character  of  their  handicraft,  or  to  stray 
into  the  fields  of  strange  design  in  quest  of  some  device  better  calcu- 
lated to  attract  the  notice  of  buyers.  They  are  races  which  do  not 
change  from  decade  to  decade.  Their  life  is  the  same  grim  routine 
century  after  century,  varied  only  by  periods  of  strife  and  perfectly 
welcome  bloodshed.  Therefore  their  product,  being,  at  least  until 
very  recently,  made  for  their  own  uses,  and  not  to  fit  the  tastes  or 
purses  of  Western  decorators  and  housekeepers,  has  remained  un- 
altered. The  designs  are,  or  were,  tribal  property,  almost  as  unmis- 
takeable  as  an  accent. 

Despite  the  roughness  of  these  peoples,  despite  their  ignorance 
of  artistic  precept,  there  is  manifest  in  their  work  an  aesthetic  realiza- 
tion of  the  consistencies,  an  accurate,  intuitive  sense  of  color  value, 
which  makes  them,  where  bold,  intense  color  effects  are  required  in 
decoration,  useful  as  the  dainty  and  intricate  Persian  can  never  be. 
There  is  admirable  harmony  in  their  arrangement,  in  spite  of  what 
strikes  us  instantly  as  garish  and  eccentric.  Gaudy  they  may  be 
called,  even  astounding,  but  the  genuine  examples,  in  which  the  old 
dyes  have  been  used,  are  never  inconsistent,  never  shocking;  and 
they  have  the  merit,  rare  nowadays,  of  being  simon  pure. 

60 


DESIGN 

In  these  carpets  of  the  nomad  races  may  be  distinguished  one 
characteristic  sign — the  filling  up  of  vacant  spaces  in  the  ground  with 
small,  disjunct  figures.  This  is,  according  to  the  best  authorities,  a 
mark  whereby  the  nomad  influence  may  be  traced  in  rugs  which  in 
general  pattern  and  coloring  conform  to  more  urbane  models.  The 
accomplished  Persian  weaver  of  the  high  school,  with  a  blank  space 
to  fill,  would  traverse  it  with  continuous  trailing  vines  and  creepers, 
of  Greek,  Chinese,  or  Arabic  derivation,  adorned  at  intervals  with 
delicate  flowers,  perhaps  until  his  deep  red  or  Persian  blue  "  eter- 
nity" was  a  veritable  garden  plot  of  posies.  Not  so  the  nomad. 
When  he  employs  flowers  for  such  a  purpose,  he  first  robs  them  of 
stem,  and  hurls  them  upon  his  ground  as  if  next  moment  they 
were  to  be  trampled  under  foot.  He  is  no  artist,  but  his  vigor  is  tre- 
mendous, and  record  of  it  is  left  in  wool-yarns  upon  the  carpets  of  his 
making,  as  well  as  in  stout  strokes  upon  the  skull-piece  of  his  adversary. 

Consistency  is  as  decisive  a  virtue  In  an  Oriental  rug  as  in 
human  conduct,  and  the  lesson  to  be  read  so  plainly  in  some  of  these 
nomad  rugs  Is  one  that  may  well  be  borne  In  mind  in  judging  the 
merits  of  the  finer  varieties.  Any  really  good  fabric  should  stand  the 
test  of  consistency.  Those  which  do  not  are  those  which  fail  to  in- 
terest as  soon  as  they  have  ceased  to  be  new.  Only  long  and  careful 
study  of  the  forms  of  design  can  supply  the  knowledge  requisite  for 
making  this  test  thorough,  but  the  briefest  acquaintance  with  a  few 
good  specimens  of  the  various  groups  should  enable  any  person  to 
detect  the  utter  incongruity  of  the  unrelated  patterns  which  so  often 
make  war  upon  each  other  from  the  ground  and  from  the  border  of 
one  and  the  same  carpet.'     Rug  designs  need  not  be  complex  to  be 


*  Among  very  old  fabrics  are  found  examples  made  without  border  and  consisting  of  a  diaper  or 
some  complete  design,  bounded  only  by  the  edge  of  the  carpet  itself.  These  are  oddities,  and  are 
most  rare.  A  piece  is  occasionally  found  from  which,  for  some  inexplicable  reason,  the  borders  have 
been  cut  away.  Examination  of  the  edges  will  show  whether  it  is  an  original  *'  all-over  carpet "  or  a 
haggled  fragment. 

6x 


/ 


O  R  I  E  N  T  A  L     RUGS 

good,  but  they  should  preserve  their  types  to  take  rank  as  worthy  or 
desirable  examples. 

The  derivation  of  many  of  the  ornament  forms  is  a  matter  still 
so  much  mooted  that  this  warning  against  incongruities  should  not 
be  too  strictly  construed.  It  is  impossible  at  this  day  to  select  any 
number  of  rug  patterns  from  the  multitude  in  use,  and  classify  them 
as  belonging  exclusively  to  any  single  group  of  fabrics,  or  to  any  lo- 
cality. The  decorative  art  of  the  East  is  of  too  old  a  growth.  Its 
beginnings  are  too  deeply  hidden  in  the  shadows  of  an  earlier  age, 
its  journeyings  too  manifold.  In  some  learned  quarters  there  is  a 
tendency  to  derive  from  a  common  source  all  figures  known  to  pure 
ornament.  Professor  Goodyear  maintains  that  every  decorative  de- 
vice had  its  birth  in  the  lotus,  that  the  figures  in  modern  rugs,  as 
well  as  all  the  forms  of  architecture,  are  descended  from  the  lily  of 
the  Nile,  emblem  now,  as  in  the  old  Egyptian  days,  of  regeneration 
and  immortality.  Such  a  proposition  is  too  thoroughly  archaeological 
to  come  at  all  within  the  province  of  this  book.  It  is  certain  that  un- 
questionable lotus  forms  played  a  large  part  in  the  Assyrian  system 
of  ornamentation,  and  that  they  appear  with  the  selfsame  treatment, 
almost  without  modification,  in  many  Persian  rugs.  That  transmis- 
sion is  entirely  within  the  view  of  history.  And  with  sometimes 
more  and  sometimes  less  of  alteration  the  same  arrangement  is  found 
in  numberless  rugs  made  in  districts  remote  from  the  present  bound- 
aries of  Persia.  It  is  not  to  be  wondered  at.  The  whole  Eastern 
country  has  been  a  highway  for  race  movements,  and  well  nigh  every 
decorative  design  has  in  the  mighty  interchange  become  universal 
throughout  the  East;  but  the  intense  conservatism  which  has  until 
now  repelled  the  advances  of  Western  art  has  served  a  useful  pur- 
pose in  this  matter.  The  peoples  of  different  parts  of  Asia  and  Asia 
Minor  have  developed  characteristics — treatments,  modes  of  draw- 
ing, arrangements — which  for  the  time  at  least  pass  as  essentially 

62 


DESIGN 

their  own;  and  wherever  the  old  figures  have  wandered,  they  have 
been  modified,  adjusted  to  local  theories,  and  made  to  conform  to  the 
local  color  scheme  in  such  manner  that  they  are  practically  part 
of  the  system  into  which  they  have  been  adopted.  Where  this 
has  not  been  done  the  carpets  are  mere  bald  composites,  and  have 
lost  much  of  their  artistic  charm  thereby. 

In  any  endeavor  to  classify  the  various  fabrics,  even  tentatively, 
on  a  basis  of  similarity  of  ornament  forms  alone,  sight  must  not  be 
lost  of  the  fact  that  much  of  the  territory  where  these  rugs  are  made 
has  quite  recently  changed  hands,  and  while  therefore  some  carpets 
are  sold  under  new  classification,  the  character  of  the  people  and  the 
fashion  of  their  workmanship  remain  as  if  they  had  not  passed  from 
one  rule  to  another.  Perhaps  the  best  that  can  be  done  in  the  way 
of  broad  characterization  is  to  say  that  the  Caucasian,  Turkish,  and 
Tartarian  or  Turkoman  fabrics  are  geometrical,  while  those  of  the 
Persians,  and  the  Indian  whose  impetus  and  education  are  Persian, 
are  realistic  and  floral.  This  general  distinction  will  serve  as  a  pre- 
mise to  consideration  of  the  rugs  of  commerce.  It  is  by  no  means 
meant  that  the  floral  element  is  absent  from  the  Caucasian,  Turkish, 
and  Turkoman  fabrics.  On  the  contrary,  they  abound  in  flowers, 
but  the  genius  of  these  countries  has  made  the  blossoms  largely 
rectilinear.  Caucasia  and  Turkestan  have  converted  the  forms  of 
nature  into  geometry.  The  Anatolian  weavers  have  conventionalized 
the  Persian  flowering  vines  and  the  flower  and  tree  forms.  Save  for 
the  distinctively  Persian  "  pear  "  or  *'  crown  jewel  "  device,  in  the  fill- 
ing of  some  Kabistan,  Tzitzi  and  Mosul  rugs  in  the  Caucasian  class, 
and  the  pure  forms  in  the  Herati, — which  is,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  Per- 
sian,— the  designs  have  lost  their  Persian  character  upon  crossing 
into  Anatolia  or  over  the  northern  or  eastern  borders. 

Remarkable  ingenuity  has  been  displayed  in  the  conversion  of 
many  of  these  features.     To  preserve  the  swaying  vine  effect  found 

63 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

in  the  borders  of  the  Persian,  for  example,  the  designers  of  the 
Ghiordes  and  Kulah  rugs  have  utilized  the  stems  of  their  leaf  pat- 
terns. The  direction  of  these  is  alternated  so  that  a  perfect,  although 
somewhat  angular  undulation  is  produced.  So  delicately  is  this  ef- 
fected that  quite  protracted  study  of  the  rug  may  be  made  before  the 
arrangement  is  noticed.  Nor  does  distance  seem  to  have  stood  in 
the  way  of  this  interchange  of  patterns.  To  all  the  Mediterranean 
coasts  Asia  Minor  taught  the  form  of  textile  art  which  it  had  learned, 
and  took  in  return  whatever  notions  they  had  of  decoration.  To  this 
day  little  Turkish  children  sleep  under  coverings  which  had  their 
patterns  long  ago  from  Morocco. 

It  is  not  strange,  again,  that  Chinese  fretted  patterns  should  be 
found  scattered  over  the  central  fields  and  ranging  in  the  borders  of 
the  rugs  of  Samarkand,  Kashgar  and  Yarkand,  and  in  the  borders  of 
some  other  Central  Asian  carpets.  These  regions,  situated  in  the 
direct  line  of  travel  across  the  continent,  have  always  been  affected  by 
the  Chinese  influence ;  they  are  in  large  part  populated  by  tribes 
speaking  Mongol  dialects.  But  it  is  more  puzzling  to  find  that  the 
Chinese  fret  is  intimately  related  to  the  Greek  key,  which  is  in  the 
border  of  many  old  rugs  made  in  Asia  Minor,  and  which  in  carvings, 
frescoes,  and  every  other  form  of  ornament,  is  recognized  the  world 
over  as  a  distinctly  Hellenic  property.  The  apostles  of  common 
origin  in  decoration  make  the  way  clear  of  such  annoyances.  For 
example,  Professor  Goodyear  declares  that  the  Chinese  fret  and  the 
Greek  meander  alike,  wherever  found,  are  only  rectangular  exaggera- 
tions of  the  curling  leaves  of  the  lotus. 

Owen  Jones  says  that  Chinese  art  is  in  essence  Mohammedan, 
that  it  is  Chinese  only  in  treatment ;  that  the  Moors  of  the  present 
day  decorate  their  pottery  under  the  same  instruction,  and  follow  the 
same  law  as  do  the  Chinese  in  their  vases.  Chinese  pottery,  he  adds, 
suggests  the  Persian  both  in  flowers  and  creepers.     As  indicating  the 

64 


■tBOunD 

!      jMfl 

)VllOD  V'  .''.iff  J 

.''U-y  ■     -rlt 

narfj  !;fft,j3Wi  OflJ  io  o  f  B  Rt 

^t 


i6fn 


at  coi 


Plate. yil.    Shirvan  Rug 

6.  X  5.2  ,1 

Loane/i  by  Mr.  Reginald  H.  Bulley 

x?y  wna' 

In  shape,  design  and  coloring,  this  is  a  most  singular  Caucasian  product 
and  an  unusually  good  one.  It  has  not,  of  course,  the  fine  texture  of  some  of 
the  Persians,  but  in  every  respect  of  craftsmanship  it  is  admirable.  It  is 
a  town  product,  without  any  of  the  nomad  ^grotesquerie.  The_aniinaL£reation, 
so  much  drawn  upon  for  patterns  by  Caucasian  weavers,  is  represented,  but 
not  in  the  laughable,  realistic  manner  common.  A  decorous  procession  of  or- 
derly scorpions  ranges  through  the  outer  border,  and  for  guard  stripes  about 
this,  small  tarantula  shapes^  thoroughly  conventionalized.  Inside  this  appears 
the  wine-glass  border,  and  inside  this  again,  the  well-known  "  reciprocal  " 
device  in  blue  and  red.  Then  we  have  what  would  ordinarily  be  called  the 
field,  covered  with  a  peculiar  diaper  design — white  on  a  red  ground — but  there 
is  a  panel  in  the  centre  of  the  rug,  that  converts  this  outer  portion  into  another 
border.  Little  can  be  divined  of  the  origin  or  significance  of  these  inner  pat- 
terns except  the  tree  of  life,  and  the  presentment  of  this  is  thoroughly  Tur- 
anian. The  rug  resembles  the  Bergamo  and  certain  Turkoman  fabrics  in  its 
extreme  width,  but  in  character  it  is  Caucasian  throughout,  and  the  finishings 

mark  it  as  of  Shirvan  or  Eastern  Karabagh. 

such  annoyances.     For 

•dyear  declares  that  the  Chines^ 


"hinese  m  the'  pottc* . 


A.  M. 


ENFIAJIAN  8t  G«S 


DESIGN 

extent  to  which  archaeology  must  be  consulted  in  the  endeavor  to 
trace  the  journeyings  of  the  rug  patterns  from  one  part  of  the  East  to 
another,  the  following,  from  the  same  author,  is  eloquent : 

'Buddhist  art,  and  contemporary  Hindu  art,  ornamental  and 
otherwise,  date  from  a  time  when  Greek  influences  dominant  in  the 
Punjab  and  Indus  countries,  spread  to  southern  India,  and  these  were 
preceded  by  Persian  and  Assyrian." 

And  further :  "  At  a  later  date  Hindu  art  became  saturated  with 
Mohammedan  lotus  patterns.  These  were  all  originally  borrowed  in 
the  countries  conquered  by  the  Mohammedan  Arabs  during  the 
seventh  century  A.D. — Syria,  Egypt,  North  Africa  and  Persia.  The 
Arab  art  was,  therefore,  ornamentally  based  on  the  Sassanian  Per- 
sian, and  these  systems,  again,  drew  their  lotus  patterns  from  Graeco- 
Egyptian  and  Egypto-Persian  sources." 

Professor  Jones  does  not  sustain  the  claims  of  the  lotus  to  the 
universal  parenthood  of  all  ornamentation,  but,  doubt  though  we 
may  that  interesting  contention,  the  origin  of  the  lotus  as  a  carpet 
pattern,  and  much  of  the  traveling  by  dint  of  which  it  came  to  be 
impressed  upon  the  art  of  every  country  in  the  Orient,  are  here  made 
sufficiently  clear.  And  in  spite  of  the  changes  which  centuries  have 
brought,  the  lotus  forms  have  been  more  faithfully  preserved  in 
Persia  than  in  any  other  part  of  the  East.  It  was  in  Assyria  and 
Babylonia  that,  having  been  transmitted  from  Egypt,  perhaps  by  the 
Phoenicians  and  Hittites,  whose  palaces  were  copied  by  the  Aryan 
kings,  they  seem  to  have  been  first  crystallized  in  ornament,  and  there 
they  have  lived,  almost  in  their  original  purity.  In  a  few  typical 
forms  the  lotus  is  found  in  present  day  Persian  carpets.  There 
seems  reason  for  classing  the  palmette,  so  called,  and  the  rosette 
among  these,  though  the  palmette  is  held  by  some  authorities  to  be 
a  Greek  form,  and  to  have  had  its  derivation  from  the  human  hand 
with  all  the  digits  extended ;  by  others  it  is  derived  directly  from  a 

6s 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

palm  growth.  The  closed  bud  which  in  old  wall-tiles,  as  well  as  in 
modern  rugs,  alternates  with  the  rosette  or  the  palmette,  forming  a 
variation  of  the  "  knop  and  flower "  pattern,  is  merely  the  nascent 
form  of  the  lotus.  It  is  significant  that  the  forms  which  show  indu- 
bitable kinship  with  the  lotus  are  chiefly  used  in  border  designs,  thus 
binding  and  unifying  the  life  story  told  in  the  body  of  the  carpet, 
with  an  unbroken  succession  of  the  emblems  of  eternity  and  renewed 
being — the  bud,  signifying  birth,  and  the  full-blown  flower,  the  com- 
pleteness of  age  ;  the  creeper  typifying  the  long  repetition  of  the  life 
process  which  separates  and  yet  unites  the  two. 

The  life  idea  finds  expression,  too,  in  the  tree  forms,  which  seem, 
viewed  as  Aryan  creations,  to  have  had  their  origin  in  the  lotus ; 
though  the  versions  traceable  to  Turanian  sources  would  appear  to 
represent  some  other  growth.  "  From  the  earliest  antiquity,"  says 
Doctor  Rock,  "  a  tradition  came  down  through  Middle  Asia,  of  some 
holy  tree,  perhaps  the  Tree  of  Life  spoken  of  as  growing  in 
Paradise."'  According  to  Birdwood,  "it  is  represented  on  the  com- 
monest Spanish  and   Portuguese  earthenware,  by  a  green  tree  that 

'  The  diversity  of  tree  forms  found  in  rug  designs  is  almost  limitless,  and  animal  figures  are 
presented  in  connection  with  the  trees,  in  all  the  manifold  fashions  born  of  varied  mythological  and 
religious  beliefs.  A  recent  writer,  borrowing  from  the  pages  of  Washington  Irving,  has  thus  described 
the  "tuba,"  the  tree  of  paradise,  representation  of  which  is  frequent  in  the  more  pretentious  of  the 
Persian  rugs  ; 

"  On  the  right  hand  of  the  throne  on  which  Allah  sat,  his  face  covered  by  twenty  thousand  veils 
lest  the  brightness  of  his  countenance  should  annihilate  the  beholders,  was  a  tree  whose  branches  ex- 
tended over  a  space  greater  than  that  between  the  sun  and  the  earth.  About  it,  angels  were  more 
numerous  than  the  sands  of  the  seashore  or  the  beds  of  the  streams,  and  rivers  rejoiced  beneath  its 
shade.  The  leaves  resembled  the  ears  of  an  elephant  and  immortal  birds  flying  amidst  the  branches 
repeated  the  sublime  verses  of  the  Koran.  The  fruits  were  milder  than  milk  and  sweeter  than  honey, 
and  all  the  creatures  of  God  if  assembled  there,  would  find  sufficient  sustenance.  Each  seed  inclosed 
a  houri  provided  for  the  felicity  of  true  believers,  and  from  the  tree  itself  issued  four  rivers,  two  flow- 
ing from  the  interior  of  Paradise,  and  two  issuing  beyond  it  and  becoming,  one  the  Nile,  and  the  other 
the  Euphrates." 

There  is  often  found,  too,  what  is  by  some  called  the  tree  of  punishment,  with  an  animal's  head 
at  the  end  of  each  branch. 

There  is  'another  tree,  representing  a  feature  of  the  first  of  Mohammed's  heavens,  in  which 
angels,  in  the  form  of  animals,  intercede  for  the  animals  upon  the  earth. 

66 


DESIGN 

looks  exactly  like  a  Noah's  Ark  tree."  "Sometimes,  on  Persian 
rugs,"  he  adds,  "  the  entire  tree  is  represented,  but  generally  it  would 
be  past  all  recognition  but  for  smaller  representations  of  it  within  the 
larger.  In  Yarkand  carpets,  however,  it  is  seen  filling  the  whole 
centre  of  the  carpet,  stark  and  stiff  as  if  cut  out  of  metal.  In  Persian 
art,  and  in  Indian  art  derived  from  Persian,  the  tree  becomes  a  beau- 
tiful flowering  plant,  or  simple  sprig  of  flowers,  but  in  Hindu  art  it 
remains  in  its  hard  architectural  form,  as  seen  in  temple  lamps  and  in 
the  models  in  brass  and  copper  of  the  Sacred  Fig  as  the  Tree  of 
Life.  On  an  Indian  bag  it  is  represented  in  two  forms,  one  like  a 
notched  Noah's  Ark  tree,  and  the  other  branched  like  the  temple 
candelabra." 

As  showing  the  tenacity  of  the  old  forms,  consider  what  is 
known  in  rug  design  as  the  Herati  pattern,  or  more  commonly  the 
"  fish  "  pattern.  It  is  found  in  perfect  purity  still,  in  the  rugs  of 
Herat,  some  of  them  so  new  that  they  still  bear  the  odor  of  the  wool- 
pen  ;  also  in  the  Sehnas,  Feraghans,  Khorassans  and  Kurdistans, 
and  in  rectilinear  form  in  pieces  from  Afghanistan.  Its  feature 
is  a  rosette  between  two  long,  curved  leaves,  in  which  some  imagina- 
tion has  discovered  the  resemblance  to  fishes.  This  has  given  the 
device  its  name,  though  it  has  by  some  authorities  been  traced  di- 
rectly to  very  old  Chinese  heraldic  emblems.  The  pattern  is  in  any 
case  an  ancient  one,  and  whether  or  not,  in  some  older  day,  the  fish, 
sacred  to  I  sis  and  later  to  Venus,  was  intended  in  these  lancet-leaf 
forms,  is  open  to  question ;  but  the  presence  here  of  the  lotus, 
emblem  of  fecundity,  suggests  such  a  possibility.  The  fish  pattern  is 
not  found  in  the  body  of  the  rugs  unless  it  be  in  comparative  purity, 
as  a  diaper  covering  all  or  a  considerable  part  of  the  central  field. 
In  this  diaper  it  alternates  with  a  square  or  diamond-shaped  rhom- 
boidal  arabesque  device  in  such  manner  that  the  "  row "  effect  is 
perfectly  maintained.     There  are  two  forms,  rizeh  and  darisht^  fine 

67 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

and  coarse.  In  the  Herat  carpets  the  coarse  form  is  used.  In  the 
Feraghans,  Sehnas,  and  Khorassans  the  diaper  is  most  compact. 

There  are  other  elements  equally  enduring.  Take,  for  example, 
the  "  pear  "  pattern.  For  this  device,  which  has  been  so  widely  em- 
ployed throughout  the  East  as  to  be  almost  universal,  Professor 
Goodyear  also  claims  a  lotus  derivation,  but  the  foundation  of  the 
claim  is  not  so  clear  as  in  the  cases  of  some  other  figures.  The 
"  pear  "  seems  to  have  intimate  and  original  association  with  Persia, 
since  it  is  in  the  Persian  fabrics  that  it  is  most  freely  used.  There  is, 
indeed,  hardly  any  variety  of  Persian  or  Kurdistan  fabrics  which 
does  not  display  it.  In  the  Sarabands  and  some  Shiraz  examples  it 
covers  the  whole  field.  In  the  Khorassans  it  is  used  in  most  complex 
arrangement.  Adopted  into  the  rugs  of  other  countries  it  follows  a 
rectilinear  form  which  shows  that  it  is  anything  but  indigenous. 

There  are  many  theories  concerning  the  precise  origin  of  the 
pattern ;  to  some  it  is  known  as  a  "  palm,"  to  others  as  a  "  river 
loop,"  supposed  to  represent  the  bend  of  the  river  Jhelum  in 
Kashmir,  or,  again,  the  Ganges.  This  meaning  is  chiefly  accepted 
where  knowledge  of  the  device  is  obtained  from  Kashmir  or  India 
shawls.  In  these  the  figure  is  much  elongated,  which  adds  greatly 
to  its  grace ;  it  is  an  exaggeration  of  the  long  forms  found  in  the 
rugs  of  Khorassan,  and  is  adorned  after  the  Khorassan  manner, 
though  with  far  greater  elaboration. 

The  popularity  of  the  shawls  in  America  antedated  that  of  Ori- 
ental rugs  by  something  like  a  century ;  hence  the  pear  shape,  which 
in  connection  with  shawls  is  still  called  the  cone,  has  popularly  been 
supposed  to  be  purely  Indian.  There  is  little  doubt,  however,  that 
the  pattern,  like  the  shawl  itself,  is  Persian,  and  was  carried  into 
Kashmir  by  the  Iranians  when  they  went  thither  in  the  seventh 
or  eighth  century,  taking  with  them  their  arts  and  their  an- 
cient Zoroastrian  faith.     This  is  further  borne  out  by  the  fact  that 

68 


DESIGN 

the  manufacture  and  use  of  shawls,  of  a  sort  similar  to  those  made  by 
the  people  of  India  and  Kashmir,  are  still  common  among  their  kins- 
men in  Kirman,  in  southern  Persia. 

The  "  river  loop  "  theory,  therefore,  seems  to  be  without  warrant, 
and  wholly  local.  An  explanation  more  plausible  and  consistent,  and 
from  a  source  which  invokes  credence,  is  that  given  by  Iskender 
Khan  Coroyantz,  Imperial  Commissioner  for  Persia  at  the  Chicago 
World's  Fair,  and  interpreter  to  the  late  Shah,  Nasr  ed  Din,  during 
his  travels  in  Europe.  He  declares  that  the  device  represents  the 
chief  ornament  of  the  old  Iranian  crown,  during  one  of  the  earliest 
dynasties;  that  the  jewel  was  a  composite  one,  of  pear  shape,  and 
wrought  of  so  many  stones  that,  viewed  from  different  sides,  it  dis- 
played a  great  variety  of  colors.  If  this  explanation  be  correct,  it  is 
easy  to  understand  the  ornamentation  of  the  pattern,  which  in  the 
shawls,  and  to  a  certain  extent  in  the  rugs  of  eastern  Iran,  reaches 
such  perfection.  But  it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  the  shape  was 
chosen  for  such  perpetuity  without  symbolic  or  religious  reason. 
Taking  into  consideration  the  deep  devotion  of  the  ancient  Persians, 
there  is  no  room  to  believe  otherwise  than  that  the  crown-jewel  shape 
represents,  in  its  first  meaning,  the  flame  which  they  worshipped  and 
which  is  worshipped  to  this  day  by  their  posterity  in  India  and  south- 
ern Persia.  This  view  is  born  out  by  Sir  George  Birdwood  in  his 
"Arts  of  India,"  where  he  calls  the  device  the  "cone  or  flame." 

I  have  selected,  from  the  names  applied  to  this  figure,  that  of 
"pear"  pattern,  not  because  it  has  any  historical  or  symbolical 
accuracy,  for  it  has  none ;  but  because  the  image  it  conveys  is  more 
clearly  apprehended  by  the  Western  mind  ;  it  is  what  the  shape 
suggests,  throwing  meaning  out  of  the  question. 

Efforts  to  fix  the  derivation  of  the  fretted  ornaments  have  been 
many.  Some  of  them  have  been  disregardful  of  the  universality  of 
symbolic  patterns,  for  insisting  upon  which  there  seems  now  such 

69 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

abundant  reason.  Ch.  T.  Newton  calls  attention  to  certain  coins 
from  Priene,  as  indicating  that  the  Greek  key  pattern  symbolized 
the  river  Maeander.  Birdwood,  again,  says  in  his  "  Indian  Arts"  :  "  I 
believe  the  swastika  (  L^  )  to  be  the  origin  of  the  key  pattern  orna- 
ment of  the  Greek  and  Chinese  decorative  art."  Support  is  given  to 
this  theory  by  a  Chinese  diaper  pattern  exhibited  on  pottery  in  the 
British  Museum,  and  reproduced  in  Hulme's  "  Principles  of  Orna- 
mental Art."  It  is  a  mere  multiplication  of  the  swastika  in  its 
simplest  form,  no  other  element  appearing.  Agassiz,  in  his  mono- 
graph, says :  "  The  original  motive  of  the  Mceandrina  Phrygia  is 
given  us  by  leptodea,  and  many  species  of  madrepores.  The 
leptodea  of  the  Persian  Gulf  show  the  patterns  which  ornamentalists 
call  Greek — the  wave  patterns  which  surround  Chinese,  Persian  and 
Arabic  manuscripts."  A  remote  derivation,  and  one,  it  seems,  hitherto 
unsuggested,  is  the  device  used  so  freely  in  the  carvings  of  the  Maya 
temples  in  Yucatan  and  other  parts  of  southern  Mexico.  It  is  there 
construed,  by  men  who  have  spent  years  in  the  study  of  these  extra- 
ordinary ruins,  to  be  of  serpent  derivation,  but  its  kinship  to  the 
Chinese  and  Greek  forms  is  too  plain  to  require  argument.  The 
claim  made  for  Yucatan,  that  it,  and  not  any  part  of  Asia,  was  the 
cradle  of  the  race,  has  startling  substantiation  in  many  of  the  orna- 
ment and  architectural  forms,  and  traces  of  religious  belief  which 
have  endured  there  to  this  day. 

Colonel  Thomas  Wilson,  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution  at  Wash- 
ington, has  published  a  scholarly  and  interesting  monograph  on  the 
"  swastika,"  in  the  introductory  pages  of  which  he  says :  **  No  con- 
clusion is  attempted  as  to  the  time  or  place  of  origin,  or  the  primitive 
meaning  of  the  swastika,  because  these  are  considered  to  be  lost  in 
antiquity.  The  straight  line,  the  circle,  the  cross,  the  triangle,  are 
simple  forms,  easily  made,  and  might  have  been  invented  and  rein- 
vented in  every  age  of  primitive  man  and  in  every  quarter  of  the 

70 


DESIGN 

globe,  each  time  being  an  independent  invention,  meaning  much  or 
little,  meaning  different  things  among  different  peoples  or  at  different 
times  among  the  same  people ;  or  they  may  of  had  no  definite  or 
settled  meaning.  But  the  swastika  was  probably  the  first  to  be  made 
with  a  definite  intention  and  a  continuous  or  consecutive  meaning,  the 
knowledge  of  which  passed  from  person  to  person,  from  tribe  to  tribe, 
from  people  to  people,  and  from  nation  to  nation,  until,  with  possibly 
changed  meanings,  it  has  finally  circled  the  globe." 

A  multitude  of  authorities  are  quoted  in  Colonel  Wilson's  book, 
each  attributing  what  he  conceives  to  be  the  swastika's  significance, 
and  a  multitude  of  illustrations  show  the  forms  this  mysterious,  prehis- 
toric sign  has  taken,  and  the  variety  of  objects  it  has  adorned,  in  dif- 
ferent parts  of  the  world.  It  has  been  found  in  nearly  all  prehistoric 
ruins,  in  the  temples  of  Central  America,  and  the  Indian  mounds  of  the 
United  States,  as  well  as  on  the  stone  ware  of  Europe  and  the  buried 
ruins  of  all  the  East.  It  has  passed  out  of  use  in  modern  times 
among  nearly  all  Christian  nations. 

Colonel  Wilson  says  further :  "  The  swastika  mark  appears  both 
in  its  normal  and  ogee  forms  in  the  Persian  carpets  and  rugs.  While 
writing  this  memoir,  I  have  found  in  the  Persian  rug  in  my  own  bed- 
chamber, sixteen  figures  of  the  swastika.  In  the  large  rug  in  the 
chief  clerk's  office  of  the  National  Museum,  there  are  no  less  than 
twenty-seven  figures  of  the  swastika.  On  a  piece  of  imitation  Persian 
carpet,  with  a  heavy  pile,  made  probably  in  London,  I  found  also  fig- 
ures of  the  swastika.  All  the  foregoing  figures  have  been  of  the 
normal  swastika,  the  arms  crossing  each  other,  and  the  ends  turning 
at  right  angles,  the  lines  being  of  equal  thickness  throughout.  Some 
of  them  were  bent  to  the  right,  and  some  to  the  left.  At  the 
entrance  of  the  Grand  Opera  House  in  Washington,  I  saw  a  large 
India  rug  containing  a  number  of  ogee  swastikas ;  while  the  arms 
crossed  each  other  at  right  angles,  they  curved,  some  to  the  right, 

71 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

some  to  the  left,  but  all  the  lines  increased  in  size,  swelling  in  the 
middle  of  the  curve,  but  finishing  in  a  point.  The  modern  Japanese 
wistaria  work-baskets  for  ladies  have  one  or  more  swastikas  woven  in 
their  sides  or  covering. 

"  Thus  it  appears  that  the  use  of  the  swastika  in  modern  times  is 
confined  principally  to  Oriental  and  Scandinavian  countries,  countries 
which  hold  close  relations  with  antiquity  ;  that,  in  western  Europe, 
where  in  ancient  times  the  swastika  was  most  frequent,  it  has,  during 
the  last  one  or  two  thousand  years,  become  extinct.  And  this  in  the 
countries  which  have  led  the  world  in  culture." 

Discussing  its  prehistoric  existence  over  such  wide  area  of  the 
earth's  surface,  Colonel  Wilson  builds  wholly  upon  the  theory  of 
migration.  He  says :  "  The  argument  has  been  made,  and  it  has 
proved  satisfactory,  at  least  to  the  author,  that  throughout  Asia  and 
Europe,  with  the  exception  of  the  Buddhists  and  early  Christians,  the 
swastika  was  used  habitually  as  a  sign  or  mark  or  charm  implying 
good  luck,  good  fortune,  long  life,  much  pleasure,  great  success,  or 
something  similar.  The  makers  and  users  of  the  swastika  in  South 
and  Central  America,  and  among  the  mound-builders  of  the  savages 
of  North  America,  having  all  passed  away  before  the  advent  of  his- 
tory, it  is  not  now,  and  never  has  been,  possible  for  us  to  obtain  from 
them  a  description  of  the  meaning,  use,  or  purpose  for  which  the 
swastika  was  employed  by  them.  But,  by  the  same  line  of  reasoning 
that  the  proposition  has  been  treated  in  the  prehistoric  countries  of 
Europe  and  Asia,  and  which  brought  us  to  the  conclusion  that  the 
swastika  was  there  used  as  a  charm  or  token  of  good  luck  or  good 
fortune,  or  against  the  evil  eye,  we  may  surmise  that  the  swastika  sign 
was  used  in  America  for  much  the  same  purpose.  It  was  placed  upon 
the  same  style  of  object  in  America  as  in  Europe  or  Asia.  It  is  not 
found  upon  any  of  the  ancient  gods  of  America,  nor  on  any  of  the 
statues,  monuments  or  altars,  nor  upon  any  sacred  place  or  object, 

72 


sriT  .q 
,luo  Jflg 
aeorfi  fbi 

-fflo  o?  0 

,b\oh  If.nJ 
oiugB  tj  ■ 
lol  3uld  . 
ni  3uld  1 
irfgll  3fli 

Dlfj    lo  fl' 

oiii  ,bn£f' 

eirfT     .3 

riairi 
3rij  /L:.. 

eioIoD  ir; 


m   Jiiiiy.'j]  'j'/'ti'iioqoi 

d  i>fi/i  bl'jB  ni  riio(f 

«»VJ  //Ifi  ovurl  olqoaq 

■^n  J  f/'jn  arf  J  ni  bonob 

,./«ii£rl^'^H3rnff'i»  )   )rf  Jiifli  B£  JfiDii 

I'^^I^U^^^^^Ms  ^''>  ^  b'jfleilqmoDDi; 

jmie  £  ?J  OTjflT 

.IloD  rf3£3  nirfJiv/^ 

Unr,  P'»niIiuo  oril 

;)JI3D  ariJ 

in  cjilJ  ri^frfv/  ni 

j'ibbfi  oiii — cnih'^ 

r.  lo  norJuii)<>du2 

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o'jftfJriib  xj  moil 

i)ibx  adJ  ewoirfi 

'  gnirfjDfnoci 

)  riiiw  bvDl  £  no 

lovib  loIoD  sHl 

f  .irfT     .3iJn3D 

f.  JaomU 

iviiim  fiD^d  avsri 

■    '- '     ■    llfOB 


Plate  VIII.    Old  Kurdlsh   Rug 

8.II  X  3,7 

Property  of  the  Author 
princL.  Klinav: 

What  mastery  of  coloring  the  unschooled  mountain  Kurd  possesses,  this 
unusual  piece  of  carpet  goes  far  toward  showing.  Moreover,  in  almost  every 
respect  it  illustrates  the  best  Kurdish  spirit  in  design  and  workmanship.  The 
repetitive  feature,  which  is  in  highest  favor  in  Kurdistan,  is  here  brought  out, 
both  in  field  and  border.  So  also,  is  the  fine  skill  in  shading,  in  which  these 
people  have  always  excelled,  but  which,  unfortunately,  is  being  wholly  aban- 
doned in  the  newer  rugs.  No  system  of  color  reproduction — even  one  so  effi- 
cient as  that  here  employed — can  bring  out  all  that  the  weaver  has  actually 
accomplished  with  an  exceedingly  small  schedule  of  color  in  the  central  field. 
There  is  a  simple  honeycomb  pattern  repeated,  with  a  small  flower  figure 
vvithin  each  cell.  Only  three  colors  are  used — yellow  for  the  ground,  blue  for 
the  outlines  and  red  for  the  fljower,  with  a  stitch  or  two  of  white  and  blue  in 
the  centre ;  but  an  alternation  of  sunshine  and  shadow,  regardless  of  the  light 
in  which  the  rug  lies,  is  effected  merely  by  the  weaver's  manipulation  of  the 
yarns — the  addition  of  a  knot  of  blue  here  and  there,  or,  on  the  other  hand,  the 
substitution  of  a  knot  of  yell^^  or  red,  and,  to  complete  the  result,  a  trimming 
of  the  yellow  and  red  yarns  shorter  than  the  blue.  When  the  rug  is  looked  at 
from  a  distance  the  yellow  is  hidden  and  the  shadow  of  blue  is  intense.  This 
throws  the  yellow  and  red  in  other  parts  into  yet  stronger  contrast. 

Something  of  the  effect  may  be  secured  by  holding  the  plate  horizontally 
on  a  level  with  the  eye.  This  will  also  bring  out  strongly  the  manner  in  which 
the  color  diversions  in  the  border  have  been  adjusted  to  coincide  with  the 
centre.  This  border  has  a  more  extensive  range  and  variety  of  colors  than 
almost  any  rug  the  author  Jias  ever  seen.  Some  minute  spots  of  faint  colors 
have  been  unavoidably  lost  in  reduction,  but  the  color  process  has  almost  mir- 
aculously retained  the  effect  of  them. 


X.  M.  ENFIAJIAN  &  COJ 


DESIGN 

but  upon  such  objects  as  indicate  the  common  or  every-day  use,  and 
on  which  the  swastika,  as  a  charm  for  good  luck,  would  be  most  ap- 
propriate, while  for  a  sacred  character  it  would  be  most  inappropriate." 

Thus  the  emblems  of  the  older  faiths  are  popularized  in  the  orna- 
ment systems  of  the  whole  world  to-day.  Their  very  endurance 
speaks  their  fitness  to  endure,  and  to  become  universal,  even  in  im- 
perfect forms.  The  harmony  of  which  they  are  an  expression  has  in 
some  mystical  way  seized  upon  the  imagination  of  the  West,  and  taken 
the  place  of  later  conceit,  which  finds  in  ingenuity  alone  its  claim  up- 
on the  fitful  fancy  of  mankind.  All  that  is  not  ephemeral  in  design, 
all  that  does  not  lose  vogue  in  a  season,  seems  to  be  directly  trace- 
able to  these  old,  symbolic  devices  of  the  East,  which  have  outlived 
the  passing  of  nations  and  of  creeds. 

Allusion  has  been  made  elsewhere  to  the  manner  in  which  rug 
designs  travel  from  one  part  of  the  Orient  to  another.  Until  one  has 
been  among  the  weavers  and  rug  dealers  of  Persia,  it  is  impossible  to 
realize  how  thoroughly  established  and  universally  recognized  the  great 
majority  of  designs  have  become,  how  much  more  of  a  trade  than 
an  art  is  most  modern  weaving.  The  native  designer  copies 
and  modifies.  His  originality  stops  with  the  petty  changes  in  draw- 
ing or  color  made  in  some  old  design.  In  the  first  place  the  parts  of 
the  design  have  names,  which  are  known  to  weavers  everywhere. 
The  main  ground,  for  instance,  is  metnih  ;  the  band  of  solid  color  on 
the  outside  of  the  rug,  tevehr ;  the  narrow  stripe  just  inside  that, 
zinjtr,  or  chain  ;  the  small  border  stripe,  bala-kachi ;  the  middle  or 
main  stripe  is  ara-khachi ;  the  corners,  lechai ;  the  lines  dividing  the 
stripe,  su,  or  water  ;  the  outlines  of  all  designs,  kherdeh.  These  are 
only  terms  used  to  indicate  parts  of  the  rug.  Then  with  each  com- 
plete design  known  by  a  name,  the  Oriental  might,  if  he  only  would, 
order  the  most  elaborate  carpet  without  the  expenditure  of  more  than 
fifty  words.     It  is  necessary  to  dictate  colors  only  for  the  principal 

73 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

parts  of  the  design.  The  color  of  the  smaller  elements  is  usually  left 
to  the  weaver's  judgment,  except  in  big  factories.  There  the  European 
or  Levantine  manager  controls  the  distribution  of  colors  even  down 
to  the  smallest  vine  and  leaf  forms. 

The  Perso-Turkish  word  for  design  is  tereh.  An  echo  of  the 
days  when  the  weaving  was  done  under  viceroyal  auspices  is  found  in 
the  names  by  which  many  of  the  standard  terehs  are  known.  There 
is,  for  example,  the  tereh  Shah  Abbas,  one  of  the  most  beautiful  and 
at  the  same  time  simplest  of  the  ancient  designs.  While  floral  in 
character,  it  is  a  complete  departure  from  the  complex  flower  and 
vine  masses  common  in  fine  Persian  fabrics  prior  to  the  reign  of  the 
Great  Shah.  Its  flowers,  laid  broadly  in  yellow,  red  and  blue,  and 
with  only  the  smallest  display  of  connecting  vines,  were  of  good  size 
and  in  a  way  conventional,  and  stood  out  clear  and  fine  upon  a  plain 
ground  of  the  richest  blue.  They  are  really  modifications  of  the  al- 
ternating palmettes  and  rosettes  found  in  the  old  borders.  There 
still  remain  in  the  possession  of  some  fortunate  collectors,  in  this 
country  as  well  as  in  Europe,  old  Shah  Abbas  pieces,  worn  to  the 
woof  but  with  the  abiding  vestiges  of  color  still  luminous.  I  have 
known  a  Persian  who  paid  thirty  dollars — and  gladly — for  a  fragment 
of  one  of  these  old  Shah  Abbas  rugs,  not  more  than  fourteen  or 
fifteen  inches  wide,  and  perhaps  two  feet  long.  He  drew  it  tenderly 
and  with  indescribable  pride  from  his  strong-box,  and  turned  its  vel- 
vety surface  back  and  forth  in  the  dim  light  of  the  bazaar,  saying : 
**  Now  I  have  a  real  model.  I  shall  see  if  the  weavers  of  to-day  are 
failures  or  not."  The  Shah  Abbas  pattern  is  still  made  in  rug  fac- 
tories, but  in  most  cases  it  bears  the  name  only  by  courtesy.  It  is 
merely  a  jumble  of  disjunct  floral  figures  in  coarse  weaving  and  usu- 
ally execrable  colors,  crowded  into  the  field  of  some  huge  carpet  in  a 
fashion  that  seems  little  short  of  mockery  after  one  has  looked  on  the 
chaste  beauty  of  the  old  fabric. 

74 


DESIGN 

Another  design,  which  has  so  much  of  the  decorative  quality  of 
the  Shah  Abbas  that  some  of  its  floral  figures  seem  like  a  plagiarism, 
is  the  tereh  Mina  Khani — named  for  Mina  Khan,  long  ago  a  ruler  in 
West  Persia.  In  this  the  flowers,  alternate  red,  yellow  and  particol- 
ored red  and  blue,  are  joined  by  rhomboidal  vines  of  rich  olive  green, 
so  as  to  form  a  diamond  arrangement.  In  the  old  versions  of  this 
design  there  is  left  an  abundance  of  the  blue  ground.  The  main 
borders  also  carry  large  flowers  in  soft  colors.  The  narrow  stripes 
often  show  the  reciprocal  figures  of  the  Karabaghs.  In  the  moderns 
the  figures  are  crowded  as  in  the  Shah  Abbas,  and  the  lustrous  quality 
of  the  colors  has  given  way  to  the  loudness  of  the  anilines,  which 
when  years  have  passed  over  the  carpet  become  dull  and  worse  than 
unattractive. 

The  Sardar  Aziz  Khan,  once  a  governor  in  Azerbijan,  was  also 
parent  to  a  design,  which  still  bears  his  name — tereh  Sardar — but 
reflects  no  particular  glory  on  his  memory.  It  is  common  in  the 
present  day  carpets,  and  is  particularly  adapted  to  the  modern  re- 
quirement in  heavy  design.  Its  principal  element,  by  which  it  can 
be  distinguished  instantly,  is  the  use  of  ridiculously  long,  narrow  leaf 
forms,  united  by  vines  and  relieved  by  bold  floral  shapes.  The  de- 
signer seems  to  have  taken  his  first  inspiration  from  the  Shah  Abbas, 
and  added  the  great  leaves,  in  place  of  slender  vines,  as  a  sort  of  sign 
manual. 

The  favorite  substitute  for  the  fish  pattern  in  the  fine  old  Fer- 
aghan  rugs  was  the  kindred  tereh  Guli  Hinnai — or  Flower  of  the 
Henna  design.  Henna  is  the  plant  with  the  extract  of  which  the 
Persians  dye  their  beards,  hair  and  finger-nails  in  such  extraordinary 
shades  of  red.  The  Guli  Hinnai  design  presents  a  small  yellow 
plant  shape,  set  in  rows,  and  with  profuse  flower  forms  uniting  them 
in  diamond  arrangement,  something  after  the  manner  of  the  fish  pat- 
tern.    The  treatment  of  this  in  the  Feraghans  makes  it  resemble  the 

75 


OKIE  NT A L    RUGS 

Herati  diaper,  though   it  is  richer  by  reason  of  the  predominance 
of  red. 

7«r^^«;V  means  "  like  a  sour  orange."  It  is  the  name  given  to 
all  pronounced  medallion  rug  designs  with  curved  outlines.  Tereh 
Sihbih — apple  pattern — is  a  Kurdistan  design,  in  which  conventional 
elements  bearing  only  the  remotest  resemblance  to  fruit  are  arranged 
in  perpendicular  rows  in  the  ground.  These  are  only  a  few  of  the 
names  in  vogue,  but  they  will  serve  to  show  how  thoroughly  stereo- 
typed the  carpet  designs  of  the  East  have  become. 

Before  leaving  this  subject  attention  should  be  called  to  one 
salient  feature  of  Oriental  carpets,  which  may  otherwise  be  misun- 
derstood to  the  discredit  of  many  a  desirable  fabric,  and  the  loss  of 
many  a  collector.  In  some  admirable  rugs  faults  of  design  will  be 
noticed,  departures  from  the  evident  scheme,  which  would  ordinarily 
be  unexplainable  except  upon  the  ground  of  carelessness  of  work- 
manship. These  are  the  "  irregularities  "  referred  to  by  Sir  George 
Birdwood,  and  though  incomprehensible,  as  he  elsewhere  says,  to  the 
formal  Western  mind,  their  significance,  so  cogently  pointed  out  by 
him,  should  in  many  instances  lend  value  to  the  carpet  in  which  they 
occur,  instead  of  going  to  condemn  it. 

Perhaps  the  most  remarkable  case  of  divagation  in  design  that 
ever  found  its  way  into  this  country  was  a  rug  which  once  passed 
through  the  hands  of  an  importing  firm  in  New  York.  Where  it 
went,  or  who  became  its  possessor,  I  do  not  know.  This  extraordinary 
carpet,  which  is  so  erratic  that  it  defies  classification,  has  perhaps 
a  history  which  would  be  well  worth  the  writing,  if  it  could 
ever  be  learned  from  that  distant  East  out  of  which  it  made  its  way 
hither.  It  is  some  four  feet  wide  by  seven  in  length,  of  extremely 
heavy,  firm  and  admirable  workmanship,  and  though  it  has  the  appear- 
ance of  having  been  made  by  sewing  together  scraps  of  rugs  of  widely 
different  varieties,  was  found  upon  examination  to  be  one  piece,  and 

76 


DESIGN 

perfect  in  every  way  save  one.  It  is  begun  after  the  pure  Sarakhs 
design,  in  fine  harmony  of  field  and  border.  About  eighteen  inches 
from  the  beginning,  the  field  pattern  is  abruptly  changed  to  the  most 
perfect  Feraghan ;  the  Sarakhs  border  is  continued.  Then,  as 
suddenly,  after  ten  inches  more  of  progress,  the  inner  stripe  of  the 
border  is  abandoned,  cut  off  short,  to  make  more  room  in  the  field, 
and  for  the  Feraghan  body  is  substituted  a  great  and  gaudy  design 
upon  a  pale  ground,  which  cannot  be  recognised  as  belonging  to  any 
type.     In  this  last  pattern  the  carpet  is  finished. 

Whether  this  eccentric  composition  is  a  work  of  more  hands 
than  one,  each  succeeding  weaver  having  put  into  it  the  pattern  which 
seemed  to  him  or  her  noblest ;  or  whether  it  is  a  witness  to  the  ability 
of  some  versatile  Oriental  to  work  well  in  several  designs  ;  or  whether, 
again,  it  tells  of  a  task  taken  up  by  a  second  weaver,  after  the  death  of 
its  beginner,  and,  the  second  having  been  removed,  another  undertak- 
ing the  labor  of  its  completion,  who  can  tell  ?  It  may  be  a  pattern  piece 
for  several  designs ;  it  may  be  a  "  hoodoo  "  rug,  or  it  may,  on  the 
other  hand,  be  an  extreme  example  of  the  irregularity  of  which  the 
learned  Englishman  speaks,  a  carpet  which  some  superstitious  Per- 
sian has  made  to  cover  the  grave  of  his  progenitor,  hoping  that  its 
exaggerated  oddity  would  indeed  "  avert  the  evil  eye "  and  vouch- 
safe an  undisturbed  repose. 

There  is  one  more  trick  of  design  in  Eastern  carpets,  which  to 
many  will  necessitate  a  word  of  explanation.  Of  Western  apart- 
mental  arrangement  the  weaver  of  the  Orient  had  in  the  beginning, 
little  or  no  conception.  The  topography  of  his  own  home,  to  fit  which 
his  carpets  were  created,  was  of  an  unvarying  order.  It  is  this,  by 
the  way,  which  explains  the  prevalence  of  long,  narrow  shapes  in  so 
many  varieties  of  imported  rugs — the  shapes  which  are  called  "  run- 
ners "  in  our  market,  and  are  used  chiefly  for  stair  and  hall  coverings. 
The  floor  of  the  Eastern  room  is  mapped  into  four  sections,  and  for 

77 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

these  four  pieces  of  carpet  are  constructed.  In  the  middle  a  wide 
strip,  two  narrow  strips  along  the  sides  of  this,  and  a  fourth  across 
the  end,  upon  which  the  master  of  the  house  sits  at  meat,  with  room 
at  his  right  hand  and  left  for  the  guests  of  honor,  or  perchance  his 
favorites^  while  persons  of  lesser  importance  occupy  places  upon 
the  divans  at  the  sides.*  Knowing  no  floor  scheme  save  this,  the 
Oriental,  when  the  dealers  in  Western  markets  called  upon  him  for 
carpets  of  great  size,  wrought  all  four  strips  into  a  single  piece ;  and 
in  the  large  trade  collections  these  vast  and  extraordinary  objects  are 
sometimes  found.  Historically,  they  are  of  value,  for  they  are  the 
triclinia,  or  (later)  triclinaria,  upon  which  the  ancient  East  lay  at 
its  feasting.  But  they  have  no  place  in  our  scheme  of  furnishing, 
and,  though  they  are  woven,  oftentimes,  in  the  most  skilful  fashion, 
and  are  bought  at  great  cost  by  persons  in  quest  of  the  eccentric, 
they  look  to  the  novice  like  so  many  bits,  sewn  together  with  a  purpose 
not  altogether  rational. 

Confronted  with  these  archaic  creations  the  Western  firms  were 
forced  to  take  the  designing  of  the  whole-carpet  sizes  into  their  own 
hands.  There  were  needed  indeed  fabrics  which,  while  they  covered 
the  requisite  space,  should,  at  the  same  time,  preserve  the  completeness 
of  design  and  color  scheme  which  marks  the  smaller  rugs.  With  this 
in  view  they  provided  sketches  of  what  they  wanted,  and  contracted 
with  the  Oriental  agents  for  the  making  of  the  big,  heavy  pieces, 
the  production  of  which  has  now  grown  to  such  vast  proportions  in 
different  parts  of  the  East.     It  was  first  tried  in  Asia  Minor,  and 


'  Occasionally  there  are  found,  principally  in  modern  coarse  Hamadans,  what  are  known  in 
Constantinople  as  keosseh  (corners).  These  are  merely  quarter  sections  of  large  designs,  woven  as  com- 
plete fabrics,  and  for  oddity,  more  than  aught  else,  used  in  small  rooms,  where  two  sides  are  taken  up 
by  divans,  canopies,  and  other  adjuncts  or  that  modern  hodge-podge,  the  "cosy  corner."  They  are 
well  adapted  for  this  purpose,  since  the  quarter  of  the  central  medallion  common  to  the  Hamadans 
covers  the  floor  under  the  canopies,  and  the  rich  borders  are  displayed  outside.  Of  late,  also,  some 
round  pieces  have  been  produced,  in  silk,  chiefly  if  not  altogether  from  the  looms  of  Tabriz.  They  are 
meant,  of  course,  for  table  covers,  and  some  of  them  are  well  designed  and  deftly  wrought. 

78 


DESIGN 

proved  so  successful  that  Western  designers  are  now  stationed  at 
weaving  centres  in  Persia  and  India,  as  well  as  in  Anatolia.  The  con- 
ceits of  these  gentlemen,  following  in  general  the  theory  of  the  East, 
but  combining  the  designs  of  the  various  types  or  supplying  Occi- 
dental features,  in  such  manner  as  to  please  the  Western  fancy  or 
accord  with  other  Western  decorations,  are  registered  as  the  pro- 
perty of  the  firms.  It  has  been  the  custom  of  the  native  weavers 
to  appropriate  them,  but  the  governments,  after  long  insistence  and 
the  invocation  of  consular  influence,  have  decided  that  the  regis- 
tration shall  protect  the  design,  and  that  to  violate  it  shall  be  a 
punishable  misdemeanor. 


c- 


VII 
WEAVING 

NOW  for  the  weaving,  the  patient,  painstaking  labor  at  which 
so  many  hundreds  of  thousands  of  swarthy  fingers  are  flying, 
and  have  been  flying  since  the  days  of  the  Pharaohs. 
Measured  by  results  it  is  a  wonder  work ;  watched,  in  its  tireless 
repetition  of  three  simple  processes  that  a  child  can  master,  it  seems 
no  more  of  an  art  than  the  constant  turning  of  an  hour  glass — which, 
in  fact,  to  myriads  of  these  Eastern  people,  it  is.  The  whole  thing 
is  simple,  to  look  at,  to  read  about ;  but  there  is,  nevertheless,  some 
peculiar  spirit,  some  mental  drift,  some  inherent  and  mysterious  fit- 
ness pervading  and  governing  their  work,  which  makes  these  Orientals 
the  best  weavers  in  the  world.  Peoples  of  other  races  have  reared 
looms,  and  dyed  yarn,  and,  borrowing  the  tricks  of  color  and  of  stitch 
from  Turkey  and  Persia,  have  striven  to  work  out  upon  the  warp  a 
harmony  as  rich  and  full  as  theirs.  But  they  have  failed.  The  Eng- 
lish scholar  has  perhaps  hit  upon  the  truth  when  he  says:  *' Anti- 
quity, from  its  being  nearer  than  we  are  to  the  divine  origin  of  things, 
was  ever  mindful  to  symbolize  in  its  sublime  art  the  truth  of  the  con- 
viction that  the  green  circle  of  the  earth  and  the  shining  frame  of  the 
out-stretched  heavens  are  but  the  marvellous  intertexture  of  the  veil 
dividing  between  the  world  we  see,  and  the  unseen,  unseeable  world 

80 


^ 


WEAVING 

beyond.  This  is  the  reason  of  the  vitality,  the  dignity  and  power  of 
giving  contentment,  possessed  by  the  arts  of  the  world  of  antiquity, 
with  which  the  arts  of  the  modern  world  of  the  West  will  never  be 
indued  until  they  also  become  animated  by  the  spirit  of  the  pristine 

faith  of  every  historical  race  in  the  old  world For  all  the 

technical  instruction  which  may  be  given,  and  all  the  luxurious  illus- 
trations of  typical  Eastern  examples  that  may  be  published,  no  truly 
great  carpet  will  ever  be  produced  in  Europe  until  the  weaver's  heart 
is  attuned  to  sing  to  the  accompaniment  of  his  whirring  loom,  in  grate- 
ful unison  with  every  voice  in  Heaven  and  earth  : 
"  Holy,  holy,  holy,  Lord  God  of  Sabaoth  ; 
"  Heaven  and  earth  are  full  of  Thy  glory.  Glory  in  the  highest." 

Unlettered  as  are  the  great  majority  of  the  Oriental  weaving 
class  of  to-day,  there  is  little  doubt  that  the  religious  element  here  re- 
ferred to  makes  up  a  recognizable  part  of  their  existence.  At  no 
moment,  even  of  their  working  days,  is  the  consciousness  of  their 
faith  absent  from  them.  A  race,  every  being  of  which,  whether 
learned  or  ignorant,  has  prayers  five  times  a  day,  no  matter  where  he 
be,  must,  in  the  very  nature  of  things,  have  an  abiding  faith  in  the 
nearness  of  the  Deity.  While  not  daring  to  question  the  infinite 
value  of  such  inspiration,  it  is  difficult,  for  one  who  accepts  the 
Mosaic  doctrine  of  Divine  retribution,  to  understand  how  any 
Oriental  weaver,  under  these  circumstances,  has  survived  the  sub- 
stitution of  the  modern  enormities  for  the  conscientious  work  he  was 
wont  to  do.  However  that  may  be,  it  is  not  to  be  disputed  that 
there  is  some  faculty  which  to  this  day  enables  the  Orient  to  excel 
the  West  in  hand-wrought  fabrics,  even  with  uncouth  appliances  such 
as  that  same  West  has  long  ago  outgrown. 

Any  lad,  with  a  knack  for  carpentry,  can  make  such  a  loom  as 
that  upon  which  the  Eastern  does  his  weaving.  Plain,  absurdly 
primitive,  it  endures  for  a  lifetime,  or  many  lifetimes,  and  its  timbers 

8i 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

are  often  adorned  with  carvings  done  by  hands  long  since  still.  It 
is  in  essential  principles  the  same  old-fashioned  structure  that  is  pic- 
tured on  archaic  tiles  and  vases  ;  the  same  that  we  know  to  have  been 
used  for  thousands  of  years  in  the  weaving  of  coarse  cloth  and  can- 
vas. The  method,  too,  is  the  same  in  its  rudiments,  with  the  addi- 
tion that  instead  of  throwing  the  weft  across  the  warp  compactly,  to 
make  a  thin,  firm  web,  the  knot  upon  the  warp  is  employed  to  form 
a  surface,  and  the  weft  becomes  merely  a  binder,  holding  each  row  of 
knots  close-pressed  to  its  neighbor.  This  addition  of  the  pile  to  the 
primitive  web  is  believed  to  have  originated  with  some  of  the  tribes 
of  Central  Asia,  where  severity  of  weather  made  warmth  a  desidera- 
tum. 

Some  looms  are  plain,  stationary,  oblong  frames.  The  majority 
of  those  in  use  in  Asia  Minor  consist  of  two  upright  beams  of  wood, 
heavy  or  light  according  to  the  weight  of  the  fabric  to  be  woven. 
They  are  fixed  parallel  to  each  other,  and  the  distance  between  them 
limits  the  width  of  the  rug.  They  support  at  the  top  a  roller,  the 
ends  of  which  turn  in  holes  bored  in  the  beams  of  the  frame,  or  in 
deep  notches  across  their  upper  ends. 

To  this  by  a  rod  which  fits  in  a  groove  upon  it,  are  fastened  the 
warp-threads,  forming  the  basis  of  the  fabric.  Ancient  looms  are  rep- 
resented as  having  a  weight  attached  to  the  end  of  every  warp-thread 
to  hold  it  taut,  in  which  case  the  weaving  must  have  been  begun  at 
top.  It  is  said  to  be  so  done  in  obscure  hamlets  of  India  and  of  far 
northern  Europe  to-day,  but  in  Persia,  Turkey, — in  fact  generally 
throughout  the  rug-weaving  countries, — the  primitive  system  is  re- 
versed and  the  rows  of  knots  begin  at  the  bottom,  for  which  purpose, 
and  to  insure  firmness,  another  roller  or  crossbar  is  placed  there. 

Several  methods  are  in  vogue  for  arranging  the  warp  upon  its 
frame.  They  are  all  upon  one  of  two  general  principles  :  First,  that 
of  having  the  weaver  shift  position,  mounting  higher  abreast  the  loom 

82 


WEAVING 

as  the  fabric  grows ;  second,  having  the  work  pass  downward  before 
the  weaver,  by  aid  of  the  rollers  at  the  top  and  bottom.  In  the  first 
method  the  crossbars  are,  of  course,  immovable,  save  that  to  the 
lower  one  a  little  play  is  given  so  that  as  occasion  demands  the  warp 
may  be  tightened  by  the  aid  of  wedges. 

For  the  second  system,  again,  two  methods  are  employed.  The 
first  is  to  wind  the  warp-threads  on  the  top  roller,  and  unwind  them 
as  needed,  rolling  the  finished  carpet  up  on  the  bottom  roller  as  the 
work  progresses.  The  second  is  to  have  the  carpet  pass  over  the 
bottom  roller  and  up  again  at  the  back,  the  warp  being  a  continuous 
thing,  like  a  belting. 

These  looms  upon  which  the  warp  moves  to  meet  the  weaver  are 
used  in  a  horizontal  position  in  many  parts  of  the  East,  notably  in 
Sehna  and  about  Bijar,  and  the  weaver  sits  at  the  end.  In  these  the 
carpet  is  regularly  rolled  along  as  it  increases.  The  Bijar  weavers 
actually  sit  on  the  finished  part  of  the  carpet  as  they  weave.  The 
nomads  in  Luristan,  Kurdistan,  and  other  grazing  districts,  when  they 
have  turned  out  the  sheep  and  goats  upon  the  range  and  pitched 
camp  for  the  grazing  season,  erect  stationary  upright  frames  to  endure 
until  winter  drives  them  from  the  place.  Rude  things  these  nomad 
looms  are — mere  trunks  of  trees,  roughly  trimmed,  with  the  shanks  of 
the  lopped-off  branches  left  to  support  the  rollers  and  the  flimsy  scaf- 
folding upon  which  the  tawny  women  of  the  tribe  sit  at  their  weaving. 
Sometimes  a  ladder  is  placed  perpendicularly  at  each  side  of  the  loom, 
and  the  plank  upon  which  the  weavers  perch  is  moved  upward  from 
rung  to  rung  as  the  work  goes  on.  The  looms  built  indoors  for  use 
in  winter  reach  from  floor  to  roof-timbers. 

The  warp  in  real  antique  rugs  is,  or  was,  in  most  varieties,  woollen. 
The  exceptions  to  this  rule  were  the  fine  fabrics,  especially  Persian, 
where  silk  or  cotton  was  used  for  flexibility,  and  those  made  by  the 
nomads  in  districts  where  goat's-hair  was  plentiful  and  was,  therefore, 

83 


O  RI EN  T A  L    RUGS 

taken  for  the  groundwork,  while  the  wool  was  saved  for  the  piling,  or 
for  sale.  In  these  latter  days  cotton  has  come  to  be  used  much  in  the 
webbing,  mainly  because  it  is  cheaper.  In  the  old-time  rugs  the  mate- 
rial of  warp  and  weft  was  one  of  the  chief  means  of  determining  the 
locality  of  fabrication.  This  was  most  useful,  since,  as  is  elsewhere 
explained,  many  patterns  were  so  widely  adopted  that  only  by  the 
character  of  the  ground-threads,  oftentimes,  could  the  fabric  be  iden- 
tified as  the  product  of  any  particular  town  or  district.  Nowadays 
even  the  most  thorough  experts  are  deceived  by  the  frequent  substi- 
tution of  cotton  for  warp  or  weft  in  localities  where  formerly  only 
wool  was  used. 

In  India,  owing  to  lack  of  wool,  hemp  is  much  employed ; 
linen  also  plays  a  noticeable  part.  In  America,  where  "  Turkish  " 
and  "  Persian  "  rugs  alike  are  made,  cotton,  linen  and  hemp  are  put 
into  the  foundations  for  thrift's  sake.  The  evil  of  a  hempen  ground- 
work is  that  under  stress  of  wear  and  wetting  it  rots,  and  from  a 
little  break  in  the  web  the  entire  fabric  is  apt  to  go  pieces  speedily. 

It  is  the  custom  among  weavers  of  many  localities  to  dye  the 
ends  of  the  warp-threads  for  some  distance,  so  that  the  carpet  may 
have  for  finishing  at  the  ends  a  web  of  red,  or  blue,  or  both.  This 
dyeing  is  done  after  the  warp  is  complete.  When  the  colored  ends 
of  the  threads  are  dry  the  whole  warp  is  fastened  upon  the  loom  and 
drawn  taut  by  the  wedges;  supplied  for  the  purpose,  above  the  ends 
of  the  lower  rollers.  Where  stationary  and  rollerless  looms  are  used, 
the  jointure  of  the  lower  cross  beam — known  as  the  "piece-beam" — 
with  the  side-beams  is  made  in  an  elongated  slot,  so  that  this  tight- 
ening can  be  accomplished  without  difficulty. 

It  becomes  needful,  when  the  weaving  is  fairly  under  way,  to 
separate  the  warp  into  two  sets  of  threads,  front  and  back.  For  this 
purpose  two  rods  are  used ;  one,  about  an  inch  and  a  half  in  diameter, 
to  which  every  other  thread  of  the  warp  is  attached,  but  not  so  tightly 

84 


WEAVING 

as  to  prevent  its  being  moved  upward  along  the  warp-threads,  as  the 
carpet  goes  on  toward  completion.  The  second,  flat,  and  about  three 
inches  in  width,  rests  between  the  front  and  back  threads.  The  use 
of  these  rods  will  be  explained  further  on. 

Preliminary  to  the  weaving,  the  weavers,  or  children  who  are 
learning  the  rudiments  of  the  art,  undo  the  big  skeins  in  which  the 
yarn  comes  from  the  dyers,  and  wind  it  into  balls.  These  are  hung 
in  a  multicolored  row,  upon  a  cross-rod  fastened  to  the  warp-beam 
overhead,  and  the  ends  hang  down  within  the  weaver's  reach.  In 
the  factories  in  the  weaving  centres  of  Persia,  spools  are  used.  In  re- 
mote districts,  when  yarn  of  a  certain  color  is  exhausted  before  the 
piece  is  done,  the  nearest  shade  that  can  be  got  is  used  to  complete 
the  figure.  Sometimes,  when  no  material  at  all  like  can  be  obtained, 
the  pattern  jumps  abruptly  into  some  other  color.  In  large  towns, 
where  dyers  are  many,  this  never  occurs,  for  the  master  weaver,  fore- 
seeing the  lack,  hastens  to  the  dye-shop  and  has  the  supply  replen- 
ished. 

The  patterns  from  which  the  fabrics  are  copied,  among  the  coun- 
try weavers,  are  usually  old  rugs,  one  or  two  of  which  each  family, 
whether  among  the  wandering  shepherds  or  the  home-staying  folk  of 
the  town,  keeps  for  that  praiseworthy  purpose.  As  much  store  is 
set  by  these  as  by  the  family  plate  in  Western  lands,  and  so  familiar 
do  these  swift-fingered  women  become  with  the  design  by  reproduc- 
ing it  year  after  year  all  through  their  humdrum  lives,  that  a  skilled 
weaver  goes  deftly  along  with  it,  supplying  unerringly,  as  if  by  un- 
conscious cerebration,  the  proper  color  in  its  proper  place,  even 
though  it  be  only  a  single  stitch  in  a  tangled  mass  of  utterly  differ- 
ent hues.  Her  fingers  seem  to  know  the  pattern,  and  half  the  time 
her  eyes  are  not  upon  the  work  at  all. 

For  beginners,  the  old  rug  is  hung  within  arm's  length,  with  the 
back  of  it  exposed  so  that  every  knot  and  its  color  may  be  easily 

85 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

discerned.    Thus  a  design,  border  and  all,  is  gradually  ingrained  upon 
the  young  weaver's  memory,  never  to  be  forgotten. 

In  towns  where  weaving  is  conducted  on  a  large  scale,  when  new 
patterns  are  to  be  used  they  are  wrought  out,  sometimes  upon  great 
cardboards,  on  which  the  stitches  are  indicated  by  squares,  each 
painted  in  its  proper  color ;  sometimes  upon  cheap  cloth,  the  design 
of  the  whole  rug  being  mapped  there  by  sewing  threads  of  the  differ- 
ent colors  upon  the  knot  spaces.  Then  the  whole  is  cut  up,  and  dis- 
tributed to  the  weavers.  This  is  always  done  in  making  the  silk 
rugs  of   Kirman   and  Tabriz.     In   most  of   the   great  rug-weaving 


THE  PERSIAN  WEAVER'S   TOOLS 


centres,  the  European  and  American  firms  keep  skilled  hands,  known 
as  "scale-makers,"  whose  business  it  is  to  weave  small  sections  of  any 
new  design,  and  these  are  given  to  the  workmen  and  women  for 
patterns.  In  Ghiordes  and  Demirdji  especially  this  custom  is  in 
vogue.  The  weavers  there  are  unable  to  work  from  a  painted  pattern. 
They  must  have  the  actual  fabric  before  them.  Not  so  in  Oushak. 
There  they  have  pieces  of  the  pattern  framed.  In  many  localities  the 
number  of  knots  of  each  color  to  be  tied  in  by  each  weaver  is  called 
or  read  off  by  the  loom-master.  The  patterns  for  borders  and  corners 
are  made  upon  separate  pieces,  and  as  the  work  upon  them  is  more  diffi- 

86 


WEAVING 

cult  than  that  of  the  centre,  the  most  accomplished  weavers  sit  at  the 
ends  of  the  plank  before  the  loom. 

Armed  with  a  little  knife  and  a  pair  of  curved  scissors,  the  weaver 
sits  down  before  the  virgin  warp  and  starts  the  fabric.  There  is  some 
preliminary  weaving  of  warp  and  weft  threads  together  to  form  a  web 
at  the  ends.  Then  the  actual  work  of  tying  the  pile  yarn  begins. 
Except  for  the  Soumak  fabrics  and  the  khilims,  which  will  be  spoken 
of  hereafter,  Oriental  carpets  are  confined  to  two  systems  of  knotting. 
The  first  is  termed  the  Turkish  or  Ghiordes  knot,  and  is  in  vogue 
throughout  Asia  Minor,  the  Caucasus,  Kurdistan,  and  in  some 
localities  farther  East. 


! 

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GHIORDES   KNOT. 


SEHNA   KNOT ; 
RIGHT-HAND   SYSTEM. 


SEHNA   KNOT ; 
LEFT-HAND  SYSTEM, 


The  second  is  the  Persian  or  Sehna  knot,  which,  though  better 
calculated  to  produce  a  close,  fine,  even,  velvety  surface,  has  in  many 
parts  of  Persia  been  abandoned  for  the  Ghiordes,  which  is  a  trifle 
more  easily  tied. 

The  difference  may  be  understood  by  a  glance  at  the  illustra- 
tions. It  is  very  simple.  In  the  Turkish  system  the  knot-yarn  is 
twisted  about  the  warp-thread  in  such  fashion  that  the  two  upstand- 
ing ends  of  the  pile  alternate  with  every  two  threads  of  the  warp. 
The  Persian  knot,  on  the  contrary,  is  tied  so  that  from  every  space 
between  the  warp  threads  one  end  of  pile  yarn  protrudes. 

In  the  number  of  knots  which  can  be  tied  to  the  square  inch  the 
advantage  lies  with  the  Sehna  method.     The  Ghiordes  brings  two 

87 


ORIENTALRUGS 

ends  of  the  knot  yarn  together,  and  leaves  consequently  a  wider 
space  between  the  knots  than  does  the  Sehna.  But  each  tuft  is 
larger  by  half,  and  if  the  pile  is  not  very  closely  clipped — as  it  is  not 
in  most  rugs  where  this  knot  is  used — the  spreading  of  these  ends 
gives  an  equally  compact  surface.  In  the  Kirman,  Tabriz,  Sehna, 
old  Turkestan  and  Kabistan  rugs,  however,  it  is  the  custom  to  trim 
the  pile  exceedingly  close,  which  brings  out  more  clearly  the  minute 
color  variations  of  the  design.  In  Tabriz  and  parts  of  Kurdistan  a 
special  system  is  used.  The  rugs  are  woven  in  the  Turkish  knot,  but 
the  arrangement  of  the  warp-threads  is  such  as  to  secure  extraordi- 
nary compactness  in  the  pile. 

The  Ghiordes  knot  took  its  name  from  the  old  city  of  Ghiordes, 
where  years  ago  the  Turkish  method  had  its  greatest  perfection,  but 
nowadays,  though  the  knot  is  the  same  and  the  weavers  many,  the 
fabrics  have  changed  sadly.  The  art  is  not  lost  in  Ghiordes,  for  at 
discouragingly  long  intervals  there  find  way  to  market  from  that  town 
dainty  prayer  rugs  or  some  bits  of  sedjadeh^  so  fine  of  texture,  so  true 
in  color,  so  traditionally  perfect  in  design,  that  experts,  knowing  well 
how  far  the  Ghiordese  have  fallen  from  workmanly  grace,  swear  by 
the  beard  of  the  Prophet  that  they  have  been  made  in  Sehna,  after 
the  Ghiordes  patterns  of  long  ago.  Of  all  the  fabrics  of  to-day  the 
Kabistans  of  the  Caucasus  will  be  found,  perhaps,  most  faithful  in  ad- 
herence to  the  old  models,  and  in  them  are  best  shown  the  fine,  vel- 
vety effects  which  may  be  come  at  with  the  Ghiordes  knot,  when  tied 
by  masters  who  have  not  proven  recreant  to  the  tradition  of  their 
craft.  The  Ghiordes  knot  is  always  one  and  the  same  thing.  The 
Sehna,  being  more  of  a  running  knot,  is  sometimes  reversed  and 
worked  from  left  to  right.  This  is  classed  by  some  authorities  as  an 
entirely  different  system.  In  all  these  knottings  two  strands  of  yarn 
are  frequently  used,  thus  doubling  the  thickness  of  the  pile. 

The  loosest  knotting  in  distinctly  modern  Eastern  carpets  is 


Hhiei^T   fit 

-nn  fit  nvrtb  ^    i  orfj  iljod  n'' 

.    I  !^  j/gntJelb  Oil. 

i;!Oll  K-Uf  Jiluti  ii     flyi«:3l»  iiflt    ;  Jnomoj^llfill*.  l>i|&  ilJi»iv  , 


moil  moituj  i.  '  " 

^mol  orfi 
3itj  xlguoirfl  b3ni:*:>ciL 
nl    .lobiod 


>,'•♦    ^,-,'!    I... 


VD  bnB 

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rfi-i3vo 
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Plate  IX.    Oi-d  Kirman  Rug 

6.IO  X  4.5 

Loaned  by  Mr.  Robert  L.  Stevens 

There  is  striking  resemblance  between  this  and  the  old  South  Persian 
Kirman  published  in  the  earlier  editions.  They  are  alike  in  size  and  theme 
and  even  more  alike  in  treatment.  In  both  the  big  red  roses  are  drawn  in  per- 
spective, so  that  even  the  curled  petals  are  distinguishable.  The  border  stripes 
are  the  same  in  number,  width  and  arrangement ;  the  design  of  both  rugs  from 
first  to  last  is  simply  the  massing  of  exquisite  natural  flowers,  a  custom  from 
which  the  later  Kirman  weavers  have  ingloriously  departed.  The  only  points 
of  real  difference,  however,  are  that  the  ground  of  the  centre  in  the  former  rug 
is  wool-white ;  in  the  present  one,  so  far  as  it  can  be  discerned  through  the 
flowers,  it  is  blue-black,  while  the  white  ground  is  reserved  for  the  border.  In 
the  field  of  the  other  rug  there  were  no  flowers  other  than  roses,  while  in  this 
we  see  the  pert,  upright  stalk  of  the  henna,  with  its  five  staring  blossoms,  set 
alternately  in  white  and  blue ;  lastly  and  most  significant,  in  the  former  fabric, 
the  roses  were  contained  in  vases,  of  the  antique  urn  type,  with  graceful  han- 
dles ;  here,  instead,  is  the  cloud-band  with  its  never  failing  suggestion  of  the 
over-mastering  Mongol.  This  weaver  was  Kasem;  the  other  was  Karim. 
Karim  was  the  poet ;  Kasem,  the  painter. 


Tin      •/   '^  r. 


A.  M.  ENFIAJIAN  ft 


WEAVING 

found  in  Kulah,  Oushak,  Ghiordes,  and  the  latter-day  Feraghan. 
The  most  closely  tied  are  those  made  in  Saruk,  Sehna  and  Kirman, 
and  in  some  of  the  better  Turkomans,  and  for  the  rest,  Kabistans, 
Tabriz,  and  Serapis.*  The  number  of  knots  to  the  inch  is  deter- 
mined, of  course,  by  the  closeness  of  the  warp-threads  and  the  number 
of  weft-threads  thrown  across  after  each  row  of  knots.  In  Sehnas 
and  Kirmans,  where  the  warp  is  of  silk,  the  weft-threads  sometimes 
lie  so  close  together  that  the  weaver  is  compelled  to  put  the  stitches  in 
with  the  needle. 

It  is  the  custom  of  expert  weavers  not  to  work  straight  across 
from  one  end  of  the  row  to  the  other,  changing  the  yarn  as  often  as 
the  pattern  calls  for  a  change  of  color,  as  tyros  do,  but  to  put  in  all  the 
stitches  of  one  color  on  the  row,  wherever  they  are  required,  before 
taking  up  another  yarn.  This  saves,  in  the  making  of  a  rug,  a  total 
of  time  well  worth  consideration.  Where  the  pattern  is  a  familiar 
one  the  weaver  can  determine  at  a  glance  on  what  warp-threads  the 
knots  of  each  color  belong,  and  even  in  strange  patterns  a  clever 
hand  does  it  almost  without  error. 

When  a  knot  is  completed  the  weaver  cuts  the  yarn  with  a  knife, 
and  it  is  one  of  the  tests  of  skill  to  cut  so  nearly  to  the  intended 
length  of  the  pile  that  a  minimum  of  material  shall  be  lost  in  the 
trimming  with  scissors,  which  is  performed  as  soon  as  the  row  is  com- 
plete. An  inventive  agent  of  a  Smyrna  carpet  establishment  once 
tried  to  compel  the  weavers  engaged  on  the  firm's  work  at  Oushak, 
Kulah,  and  Ghiordes  to  use  a  small  steel  rod,  which  was  fastened 
across  the  face  of  the  warp,  and  around  which  the  yarns  must  be  car- 


'  "Various  tests  for  ascertaining  the  quality  of  a  carpet  have  been  described.  One  is  to  drop 
on  it  a  piece  of  red-hot  charcoal;  then,  if  the  carpet  is  a  good  one,  the  singed  part  can  be  brushed  off 
without  leaving  any  trace  of  _the  burn.  Chardin  says  :  '  The  Persian  rule  to  know  good  carpets  and 
to  rate  them  by,  is  to  lay  the  thumb  on  the  edge  of  the  carpet,  and  to  tell  the  threads  in  a  thumb's 
breadth  ;  for  the  more  there  are  the  dearer  the  work  is.'  " — E.  Treacher  Collins:  '*  In  the  Kingdom  of 
the  Shah" 

89 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

ried  continuously  in  making  the  knots.  On  the  outer  side  of  this 
rod  was  a  groove  running  from  end  to  end.  When  the  row  of  knots 
was  finished  a  knife  was  run  along  the  groove,  cutting  the  yarn  as  it 
went.  So  closely  did  half  the  circumference  of  the  rod  approximate 
the  ultimate  length  of  the  pile  that  the  loss  of  yarn  by  subsequent 
trimming  was  reduced  to  about  two  per  cent.  It  is  ordinarily  twenty- 
five  per  cent,  when  the  cutting  is  done  by  guess,  for  by  no  amount  of 
effort  or  experiment  has  a  profitable  means  been  devised  for  utilizing 
the  refuse.  The  weavers  rejected  the  rod  angrily,  for  its  use  occupied 
time,  and  that  was  their  loss,  whereas  the  waste  of  wool  from  the  old 
manner  of  cutting  came  out  of  the  pockets  of  the  firm. 

Trimming  the  pile  is  one  of  the  most  important  and  difficult 
parts  of  the  weaver's  work ;  so  difficult,  in  fact,  that  Americans, 
working  upon  imitation  "  Turkish  "  or  "  Persian  "  carpets  in  the  facto- 
ries of  New  York  are  unable  to  do  it  at  all  satisfactorily,  and  a  machine 
has  been  constructed,  on  the  lawn-mower  or  planing-mill  principle,  to 
take  the  place  of  the  Oriental  weaver's  scissors.  Uneven  trimming 
of  the  pile  is  a  fault  found,  strange  to  say,  in  some  Eastern  rugs 
which  otherwise  are  of  distinguished  merit.* 

When  a  row  of  tufts  has  been  trimmed  to  even  lengths,  the 
threads  of  weft  are  thrown  across,  from  one  side  to  the  other  of  the 
warp  and  back  again.  It  is  in  this  process  that  the  rods  before 
mentioned,  the  flat  one  between  front  and  back  threads,  and  the  round 
one  to  which  the  back  threads  of  the  warp  are  fastened,  come  into 
service.  By  drawing  the  round  rod  out  a  little,  the  warp-threads  are 
separated,    back   from   front,    so   that    the   weft    may     be    passed 


'  Experiment  was  made  in  Anatolia  with  what  were  known  as  raised  patterns,  produced  by  clip- 
ping the  pile  of  the  grounds  close,  and  leaving  that  of  the  patterns  longer,  grading  the  length  so  as  to 
form  a  comparatively  accurate  relief  of  whatever  object  the  pattern  was  supposed  to  represent.  A 
number  of  these  singular  and  unpleasantly  overdone  fabrics  came  to  this  country,  but  they  were  so 
plainly  at  variance  with  the  Eastern  theory  thai  they  were  justly  neglected,  and -further  making  of  them 
was  abandoned. 

90 


WEAVING 

across  readily,  over  and  under.  Then,  reversing  the  direction,  and 
separating  the  threads  by  turning  the  flat  rod  down  to  the  horizontal, 
the  weft  is  carried  back  again,  passing  each  warp-thread  on  the  oppo- 
site side  from  that  embraced  by  the  preceding  shute.  Thus  the  row 
of  knots  is  bound  firmly,  and  the  tufts  kept  upright,  securing  an  even 
pile.  In  coarse  fabrics  of  the  barchanah  order  the  Kazak  custom  of 
tnrowing  four  threads  of  weft  across  after  each  row  of  knots  is  much 
followed.  Time  and  the  effort  of  tying  knots  are  saved.  On  the 
other  hand,  it  is  the  habit  among  the  Sehna  and  Tabriz  weavers 
to  carry  the  weft  one  way  and  then  put  in  another  row  of  knots  before 
carrying  it  back.     This  makes  the  pile  wonderfully  compact.' 

The  next  step  is  to  beat  down  both  knots  and  weft  with  a  comb 
or  "batten."  In  the  Turkish  countries  this  implement  is  of  wood, 
but  the  Persians  prefer  it  to  be  of  steel.  Unskilful  use  of  this  comb, 
beating  one  part  of  the  row  harder  than  another,  will  often  produce 
unevenness  in  the  completed  rug,  for  which,  in  extreme  cases,  there 
is  no  cure  except  to  cut  it  and  sew  it  together  again.  Clumsy  weaving 
causes  the  same  imperfection.  Some  of  the  Mosul  Kurdish  rugs 
illustrate  this. 

When  all  this  knotting,  clipping,  and  inweaving  of  the  weft- 
threads  has  been  repeated  to  the  end  of  the  design,  there  remains 
only  the  finishing  of  sides  and  ends  to  be  accomplished.  This  varies 
widely  in  the  different  localities,  but  in  any  one  district  very  seldom, 
though  there  are  some  sections  where  two  or  even  more  styles  are  in 
equal  vogue.     In  nearly  all  rugs  there  is  left  at  the  end  a  thin,  hard 


»  The  method  of  preparing  these  weft-threads  is  of  almost  incalculable  importance.  In  many 
tightly  woven  fabrics  made  in  newly  established  weaving  communities  the  sides  begin  to  curl  after  the 
rug  has  been  in  use  for  a  time.  The  cause  of  this  is  that  the  weft-thread,  which  is  carried  on  a  shuttle 
and  thus  passed  back  and  forth  is  too  tightly  twisted  in  the  effort  to  give  it  firmness.  A  simple  experi- 
ment, the  doubling  of  a  twisted  cord,  will  show  what  happens.  To  guard  against  this  curling  it  is 
the  custom  of  skilled  weavers  to  use  two  separate  threads  for  the  warp  and  have  them  twisted  in  oppo- 
site directions,  that  the  tendency  of  the  one  may  counteract  that  of  the  other. 

9« 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

web,  sometimes  scarcely  long  enough  to  be  visible,  woven  of  warp 
and  weft,  usually  dyed  in  some  solid  color  or  with  a  stripe.  Some- 
times there  is  a  thick  but  narrow  selvage  outside  the  web,  across  one 
or  both  ends.  The  loose  ends  of  the  warp-threads  are  then  made 
into  a  fringe,  short  in  most  rugs  but  in  many  of  the  nomad  fabrics 
left  long  for  the  effect,  which  is  most  striking.  The  forms  which  this 
warp  fringe  takes  are  many — knots,  twists,  and  even  in  some  cases 
braids,  such  as  form  the  lariat  of  the  Mexican  herdsman.  The  warp- 
threads,  again,  may  simply  be  cut  loose,  and  left  to  make  a  rough 
finish.  In  others  only  one  end  carries  a  fringe,  the  other  being 
stoutly  finished  by  a  singular  doubling  back  of  the  warp,  and  in- 
weaving of  it  with  the  weft-threads.  A  few  of  the  antique  prayer 
rugs  of  Ghiordes  have  sewed  on  at  the  ends  a  silk  fringe  of  the  sort 
used  in  the  finishing  of  so  many  European  and  American  curtains. 

The  sides  of  the  Eastern  carpets  are  for  the  most  part  either 
selvaged  or  overcast,  sometimes  with  wool,  sometimes  with  cotton, 
and  occasionally  with  camel's-hair  or  goat's-hair  yarn,  either  dyed  or 
in  the  natural  color.  The  selvage  is  formed  by  simply  working  the 
weft,  which  is  often  dyed,  around  the  last  few  threads  of  the  warp,  at 
both  sides  of  the  rug.  Sometimes,  as  in  the  Daghestans  and  old 
Ghiordes,  extra  threads,  colored,  are  used  to  form  a  fine  selvage  at 
the  sides.  In  the  Ghiordes  these  are  of  silk.  The  principal  finish- 
ings are  here  enumerated  in  the  briefest  manner.  An  account  of  each, 
where  it  chances  to  have  any  striking  characteristic,  will  be  found  in 
the  chapters  descriptive  of  the  different  fabrics,  and  the  textile  tables 
will  show  the  typical  finishings  of  all  the  standard  rugs  of  commerce. 

The  most  impressive  touch  a  weaver  ever  gives  a  rug  is  to  sew 
fast  upon  it,  at  some  central  point,  when  it  is  partly  finished,  a  single 
blue  bead,  a  clove  of  garlic  or  a  tiny  scrap  of  print-cloth.  All  these 
are  held  to  be  talismans,  and  to  find  any  one  of  them  on  a  rug  you 
have  purchased  is  to  know  that  the  weaver,  in  whatever  place  he 

98 


WEAVING 

wrought,  gave  personal  and  particular  benediction  to  his  fabric,  and 
wished  it  good  treatment  during  its  little  journey  in  the  world.  Of- 
tentimes, when  the  bales  of  rugs  are  opened  in  Smyrna  and  Constan- 
tinople, pieces  are  found  with  scraps  of  paper  fastened  upon  them,  on 
which  the  weaver,  or  some  one  on  his  behalf,  has  written  in  the  East- 
ern characters  a  petition  "  to  all  to  whom  these  presents  may  come," 
that  they  use  the  rug  kindly  and  pray  now  and  then  for  the  maker  of  it 

These  eccentricities  and  superstitions  which  attend  upon  rug- 
making  are  without  number.  If,  while  the  rug  is  in  process  of  con- 
struction, a  neighbor  coming  in  exclaims  at  its  beauty  or  promise,  he 
is  implored,  in  the  name  of  the  Prophet,  to  spit  upon  the  fabric  for 
luck.  No  instance  is  known,  in  the  lifetime  of  the  oldest  weaver, 
where  this  observance  was  withheld.  Should  the  guest  go  away 
without  paying  any  tribute  of  praise  he  is  counted  to  have  bewitched 
the  carpet,  and  incense  is  burned  in  the  room  forthwith  to  avert  the 
blight  of  misfortune  which  needs  must  follow. 

A  marvel  to  Americans  and  Europeans  at  the  great  interna- 
tional exhibitions  has  always  been  the  double-faced  carpet,  woven 
with  a  pile  on  both  sides  and  in  altogether  dissimilar  designs.*  Many 
people  have  been  at  a  loss  to  understand  how  this  singular  effect 
could  be  produced,  and  are  loath  to  believe  that  the  piece  did  not  in 
reality  consist  of  two  carpets,  fastened  together  back  to  back  after 
their  completion.  The  warp  is  tied  on  a  frame,  which  works  on  pins 
at  top  and  bottom,  turning  to  the  weaver  first  one  side  and  then  the 
other.  Having  finished  a  row  of  knots  on  one  side  in  its  design,  he 
turns  the  frame  over  and  works  a  row  on  the  other,  with  different  col- 
ors and  different  figures ;  then  passes  his  thread  of  weft  across  to 
bind  them  both.  It  is  a  simple  process,  after  all,  but  the  effect  is 
startling. 


'  How  old  this  trick  of  weaving  is  it  is  impossible  to  say.      Pliny  speaks  of  having  seen  these 
a/t^ifi&XXa  when  be  was  a  lad. 

93 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

In  all  Oriental  countries  rugs  were,  until  lately,  made  for  specific 
personal  purposes,  and  never  put  to  any  other  use  than  that  for  which 
they  were  first  destined.  Although  among  dealers  and  purchasers 
alike  in  this  country  these  classifications  are  little  known,  each  class 
has  its  distinguishing  name,  and  from  passing  through  Constantino- 
ple and  Smyrna  as  distributing  points  they  have  retained  the  Turkish 
use-titles,  rather  than  those  of  the  Persian,  Tartar,  or  local  dialect. 
These  are : 

Namazliky  or  prayer  rug. — This  is  the  one  piece  of  property 
which  every  faithful  Mohammedan  must  own,  and  he  clings  to  it  de- 
votedly as  long  as  he  lives.  Throughout  all  the  Moslem  countries 
the  namazlik  preserves  its  significant  feature,  the  point  or  niche  at 
one  end,  representing  the  niche  of  the  mosque.  The  colors  and 
decorative  character  of  the  prayer  rug  vary  in  different  localities.  In 
some  districts  it  is  severely  rectilinear ;  in  others,  the  lines  verging 
to  the  point  may  be  curved.  But  the  one-end  configuration  can  never 
be  mistaken  for  anything  else.  The  namazlik  is  the  Oriental's  con- 
stant companion.  When  the  call  to  prayer  comes,  he  spreads  his  rug 
upon  the  ground,  with  the  apex  of  the  niche  toward  Mecca,  and 
prostrates  himself  in  reverence,  his  head  resting  in  the  angle.  Thus 
bowed,  he  prays. 

Prayer  rugs  do  not  vary  greatly  in  size.  The  width  is  from  two 
and  a  half  to  four  feet,  and  the  length  from  four  and  a  half  to  six.  The 
prayer  rug  made  for  personal  use  has,  as  a  rule,  the  name  of  its  owner 
worked  in  the  wool,  and  is  of  the  very  best  weaving. 

Hammamlik,  or  bath  rug. — This  is  usually  presented  to  the  bride 
on  her  wedding  day.  Her  parents  are  the  donors,  but  there  is  a 
certain  humor  in  the  fact  that  the  rug,  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten,  is 
woven  by  the  girl  herself.  It  reveals  accurately  her  skill  as  a  weaver, 
and  the  limit  of  her  artistic  taste,  for  it  represents  the  thought  and 
labor  of  years.     The  hammamliks  are  used  to  spread  upon  the  floor 

94 


WEAVING 

in  the  baths  and  their  constant  contact  with  soap  and  water  gives 
them  a  peculiar  lustre.  Their  shape  is  unique.  As  a  rule  they  are 
almost  square. 

Sedjadeh,  or  floor  covering. — This  name  is  given  to  carpets  of 
medium  size,  say  more  than  seven  and  less  than  ten  feet  in  length. 
The  specific  name  for  the  larger  floor  fabrics  is  hali,  in  Persian,  kali. 

Yestiklik. — These  are  known  in  America  as  Anatolian  mats,  and 
may  be  found  in  profusion  in  any  good  stock  of  Oriental  rugs.  They 
serve  a  multitude  of  purposes  in  our  furnishing,  but  in  the  East,  the  best 
ones  are  made  to  cover  the  divan  pillows.  They  are  ornate,  and  gay 
in  hue,  since  the  pillow,  with  the  Oriental  as  with  us,  is  ornamental  as 
well  as  useful.  The  Anatolian  mats  are  more  fully  described  in  the 
chapter  on  Turkish  fabrics. 

Makatlik,  or  "  runners." — These  are  what  we  know  as  "  hall  **  or 
"stair"  rugs.  In  the  East  they  do  duty  as  covers  for  the  low  felt 
divans  along  the  sides  of  the  room.  They  range  from  two  and  a  half 
to  four  feet  in  width  and  from  ten  to  twenty  feet  in  length. 

Hehbehlik,  saddle-bag  or  saddle-cover. — Wherever  there  is  a  rug- 
making  district  there  are  saddle-bags  peculiar  to  it.  All  the  East 
rides,  and  the  hehbehlik  lends  all  sorts  of  splendor  to  caparison.  It 
reflects,  as  indeed  all  rugs  do,  the  general  character  of  the  people. 
Among  the  nomads  it  is  rough  in  texture  and  astounding  in  color. 
The  more  polished  races  observe  better  artistic  tenets  in  design,  but 
the  hehbehlik  is  always  made  substantially  and  with  more  freedom  in 
the  matter  of  brilliancy  than  any  of  the  floor  coverings  except  the 
odjaklik.     In  America  these  saddle  cloths  are  used  for  pillow  covers. 

Odjaklik,  hearth  or  fire  rug. — This  is  the  most  precious  of  all 
Eastern  family  treasures.  It  is  always  spread  before  the  fireplace  on 
the  arrival  of  a  guest.  It  is  wonderful  in  color  and  most  elaborate 
in  workmanship,  and  may  be  recognized  by  the  pointed  formation  of 
the  central  field  at  both  ends. 

95 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

Turbehlik,  or  grave  carpets. — The  custom  of  spreading  rugs,  as 
the  Occidental  strews  flowers,  on  the  graves  of  relatives  or  friends, 
seems  to  have  prevailed  more  generally  in  Persia  and  regions  imme- 
diately adjoining  it  than  in  other  parts  of  the  Orient,  though  it  is 
practised  to  some  degree  among  almost  every  Eastern  people.  The 
turbehlik — from  turbeh,  a  grave — is  the  combined  handiwork  of  all  the 
members  of  the  household.  Even  the  children  tie  knots  in  it,  that  it 
may  be  expressive  of  the  sorrow  of  all.  It  was  through  the  priests 
that  the  grave-carpets  first  came  to  be  dispensed  to  the  West.  Now 
they  are  made  for  export,  like  other  fabrics.  The  designs—  cypress, 
willow,  and  myrtle — are  eloquent  of  the  turbehlik' s  character.  The 
whole  appearance  of  it  is  funereal,  but  there  are  flowers  and  other 
bright  bits  of  color,  which  speak  of  a  blissful  hereafter  for  the  dead 
whose  bones  it  was  meant  to  cover.  This  floral  element,  indicative 
of  hope,  is  so  essential  that  even  the  geometrical  Daghestans  relax 
their  rule  and  use  tree  and  flower  forms.  In  Persia  there  is  no  limit 
to  the  decoration  employed  in  these  rugs.  Trees  themselves  embody 
the  idea  of  perpetual  life. 

Berdelik,  or  hangings. — These  are  the  fabrics  made,  not  for  floor 
covering,  but  wholly  for  the  adornment  of  wall  space,  or  for  por- 
tieres and  curtains.  The  shape,  and  sometimes  the  finishing,  will 
suggest  a  particular  intent,  but  all  rugs  which  are  of  extreme  fineness 
and  lightness,  especially  those  in  delicate  colors,  may  be  counted  as 
belonging  to  this  class.  The  Oriental  seems  to  have  been  endowed 
with  an  intuitive  notion  of  the  law  of  gravity  in  decoration.  He  never 
makes  the  error  of  placing  on  the  floor  a  fabric  intended  for  the  walls. 
The  top-heavy,  upside-down  effect,  so  apparent  in  many  American 
rooms,  is  thus  avoided. 

In  general,  it  may  be  said  that  the  silk  fabrics  are  to  be  classed 
as  berdeliks.  There  are  persons  of  lavish  leanings,  to  be  sure,  who 
employ  them  on  floors,  but  it  is  not  a  custom,  least  of  all  in  the  East, 

96 


Plate  X.  Saruk  Rug      knots  i- 

6.9  X  4.6 

Loaned  by  Mr.  F.  B.  Proctor ^^^  ^q  \^f^ 

This  is  one  of  the  best  of  such  Saruk  products  as  reach  this  countr3^.PTT?^> 
design  it  difTers  widely  from  the  generality  of  the  output.  The  row  effedt^H- 
which  is  common  in  middle  Persia,  is  here,  but  the  usual  Feraghan  devices  are 
not  used.  The  workmanship  is  very  thorough,  and  injineness  and  accuracy, 
particularly  of  the  border,  compares  favorably  with  the  weaving  of  the  olden 
times,  but  the  efifect  is  lost,  in  a  measure,  by  reason  of  the  dark  colors  which  are 
Saruk  characteristics.  Lost,  for  the  same  reason,  is  the  fine  shading  of  the 
colors  in  the  border  flowers.  These  resemble  the  Kirman  work,  while  the 
floral  elements  of  the  centre  are  laid  in  solid  colors,  such  as  are  in  vpgue  farther 
to  the  north.  The  feature  of  the  carpet,  outside  its  general  excellence  as  a 
fabric,  is  the  delicate  vine  tracery  of  the  centre,  which  is  in  a  vernal  shade  of 
green  and  forms  a  perfect  coordinate  diaper  design.  The.^iaes,  however,  do 
not  follow  the  natural  cyrv^,  foujid  in  the  old  South  Persian  carpets,  but  are 
more  in  the  broken  fashion  of  Herez. 

■  A  mark  of  modernity  is  the  excision  of  several  inches  of  border  design  at 
the  top  of  the  rug,  probably  because  the  warp  proved  shorter  than  that  of  the 
older  fabric  from  which  this  was  copied.  The  cut  is  even  made  through  the 
very  middle  of  a  flower,  to  allow  for  the  insertion  of  the  corner  device  so  that 
the  ends  may  seem  to  be  alike. 


WEAVING 

where  there  are  only  stockinged  feet  to  press  them.  They  are,  further- 
more, only  fine  editions  of  the  woolen  fabrics  of  the  same  localities. 
The  silk  is  capable  of  far  more  minute  color  effects,  and  more  perfect 
shadings,  and  has  a  natural  lustre  which  no  known  treatment  can 
impart  to  wool.' 

But  they  are  not  essentially  floor  coverings.    Silk  rugs,  therefore, 
are  not  considered  in  this  volume. 


•  '*  Silk  produced  at  Resht  is  brought  here  [Kashan]  to  be  spun  and  dyed.  Then  it  is  sent  to 
Sultanabad  to  be  woven  into  carpets,  and  is  brought  back  again  to  have  the  pile  cut  by  the  sharp 
instruments  used  for  cutting  the  velvet  pile,  and  the  finished  carpets  are  sent  to  Teheran  for  sale. 
They  are  made  only  in  small  sizes,  and  are  more  suitable  for  portiires  than  for  laying  on  the  floor. 
The  coloring  is  exquisite,  and  the  metallic  sheen  and  lustre  are  unique.  Silk  carpets  are  costly  luxur- 
ies. The  price  of  even  a  fairly  good  one  of  small  size  is  £SO,  the  silk  alone  costing  £20."— 'Mrs. 
Bishop  :   ^'Journeys  in  Persia  and  Kurdistan" 


VIII 
CLASSIFICATION 

IN  the  chapters  which  follow  an  attempt  is  made  so  to  set  forth 
in  description  the  principal  types  of  Oriental  rugs  that  a  clear 
and  comprehensive  idea  may  be  formed,  in  the  mind  of  the 
reader,  of  the  general  quality,  appearance,  color,  design,  texture  and 
usefulness  of  each. 

Attention  is  called  to  substitutions  which  are  continually  prac- 
tised by  vendors — substitutions  made  possible  only  by  the  general 
lack  of  knowledge,  among  purchasers,  of  the  points  in  which  one  rug 
differs  from  another.  Many  names,  sufficiently  legitimate  in  their 
way,  but  which  are  not  included  in  the  recognized  nomenclature  of 
the  trade,  are  attached  by  dealers,  of  their  own  fancy,  to  particular 
grades  of  rugs.  I  have  taken,  as  stated  in  the  opening  chapter,  the 
names  in  use  among  rug  men  in  Smyrna  and  Constantinople.  No 
American  buyer  who  has  ever  run  the  gauntlet  of  the  Levantine 
traders  in  these  great  markets  has  come  away  accusing  them  of  stu- 
pidity, and  their  fertility  in  new  and  fetching  Oriental  titles  for  what 
are  in  all  essentials  established  varieties  of  rugs,  and  thoroughly 
localized,  has  long  ago  been  proven.  It  is  believed,  however,  that  the 
classifications  here  made  include  all  the  standard  fabrics. 

I  have  found  upon  inquiry  in  the  rug  centres  of  Asia  that  in  some 

98 


CLASSIFICATION 

cases  names  given  in  Constantinople  as  indicating  the  town  or  pro- 
vince where  the  fabrics  bearing  them  were  made  are  erroneous,  and 
have  come  into  use  merely  through  the  fact  that  the  rugs  were  taken 
to  these  towns  for  market.  Persian  dealers,  receiving  orders  from 
Constantinople,  are  often  at  a  loss  to  know  what  is  wanted,  as  the 
names  given  do  not  comport  with  those  in  use  where  the  rugs  are 
made  and  marketed.  To  substitute  here  in  the  headings  the  names 
by  which  the  fabrics  are  known  at  home  would  cause  endless  con- 
fusion. Therefore  the  trade  titles  are  used,  correction,  where  it  is  of 
importance,  being  made  in  the  body  of  the  text. 

The  running  descriptions  bear  more  especially  on  design  and  col- 
oring, and  the  extreme  difficulty  of  making  these  in  any  wise  clear,  in 
so  small  an  allowance  of  space,  must  be  apparent,  since  the  conditions 
leading  to  infinite  variation  in  both  have  already  been  touched  upon. 
The  whole  aim  has  been  to  arrive,  by  inductive  process  and  exclusion, 
at  the  true  type  in  each  class,  group  and  variety. 

Details  of  the  texture — the  knot  employed,  the  material  of 
warp,  weft  and  pile,  the  length  of  the  pile,  the  number  of  knots  to 
the  inch,  measuring  horizontally  for  the  warp  and  perpendicularly 
for  the  weft,  and  whatever  special  peculiarities  may  belong  to  each 
variety — are  set  down  in  their  respective  columns  in  the  tables  which 
will  be  found  at  the  end  of  the  book.  Where  the  texture  of  a  cer- 
tain weave  is  at  variance  with  the  tables  I  make  bold  to  believe  that 
it  is  because  the  fabric  is  not  true  to  its  type,  but  is  either  degen- 
erate or  capricious.  In  many  points  the  tables  are  amplified  by  the 
descriptive  matter.  It  is  necessary,  in  order  to  give  a  clear  idea  of 
the  classification,  to  present  here  a  skeleton  table  comprising  all  the 
classes. 


99 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 


Daghistan- 


CAUCASIAN 

1.  Daghestan  Proper. 

2.  Derbend.  x^ 

3.  "  Kabistau  "  or  Kuba.  *^ 

4.  "  Tzitzi "  or  Tchetchen.  t/ 

5.  Tcherkess  or  Circassian. 


Transcaucasian- 


MOSUL- 


1.  Karabagh.*^ 

2.  Soumak  or  "  Kashmir. 

3.  Shirvan. '// 

4.  KAzAk.c^ 


1.  Mosul  Proper. 

2.  Turkman  or  Genghis. 

3.  Western  Kurds. 


TURKISH 

1.  Konieh  Proper.  W 

I.  Ghiorde*.*^ 

2.  Kir-Shehr.  / 

2.  Kulah.  */ 

KONIEH 

-   3,  Kaba-Karaman.  *^ 

3.  Demirdjik.^^ 

4.  Yuruks.     y^                                Smyrna- 

4.  Oushak.  '^' 

5.  Anatolians,  p^ 

5.  Bergamo  and  Ladik.  tx 

6.  Ak-Hissar.  u- 

7.  Meles  or  Carian.  m 

PERSIAN 

1.  Tabriz.  "^ 

1.  Sehna.  t^ 

{a)  Bakhshis.<^ 

2.  Kurdistan  Proper,  w' 

^ZERBIJAN— 

2.  Herez- 

{U)  Herez  Proper.  "^ 

{c)  Gdrevan.i/ 

(</)  "Serapi"  or  Sirabj^ 

Eastern 
kurdistan- 

3.  Kermanshah.  ^ 

4.  "Sarakhs"  or  Bijar  O 

5.  Koultuk.  i^ 

3.  Kara-E 

agh.u/ 

6.  Souj-Bulak.  ^ 

Feraghans— 


1.  Feraghan  Proper.  ^ 

2.  Sultanabad.  i^ 

3.  "Saraband"  or  Sarawan.  t/ 

(a)  Kara-Geuz.  \/ 

/„        ,         {J})  Oustri-nan. 

4.^Hamadan-    ,  '  ..  .  ^ 

(f)  Burujird. «' 

(^  Bibikabad.  J 

5.  Teneran-Ispahari-Saruk.t/* 

6.  "Jooshaghan"orDjushaghan.  v 


KlRMANIEH- 


1.  Kirman  Proper,   v/ 

2.  Shiraz.  1/ 

3.  Niris.i/ 


KlRMANIEH- 


4.  Mecca.i/ 

5.  Khorassan.i^ 

6.  Meshhed.  ^ 

7.  Herat.  \j 


TURKOMAN 

1.  "Bokhara"  or  Tekke.  ^         4.  Beluchistan.i^ 

2.  Yomud.  5.  Samarkand,  i/ 

3.  "Afghan"  or  Bokhara.  \/       6.  Yarkand  and  Kashgar.*^ 

100 


CLASSIFICATION 

There  are  manufacturing  towns,  such  as  Ghiordes  and  Oushak, 
in  which  several  grades  of  rugs  are  made,  and  each  grade  receives  its 
special  name  as  a  guide  to  a  knowledge  of  its  quality.  These  classifi- 
cations have  not  been  set  down  in  the  summary  table,  but  in  the 
textile  tables  details  of  the  texture  of  the  most  important  of  these 
fabrics  are  given,  and  in  the  account  of  the  products  of  each  town  or 
district  other  differences  between  the  grades  are  indicated. 

In  several  places,  as  a  result  of  Western  enterprise,  and  for  that 
matter,  of  native  ambition,  large  rug-making  interests  have  been 
established  recently,  where  some  old  and  well-known  varieties  of 
fabrics  are  used  as  patterns.  To  these  products  no  place  has  been 
given  in  the  tables,  but  they  have  been  mentioned  in  connection  with 
the  originals  from  which  they  have  been  copied.  Many  of  them 
are  of  signal  merit,  and  it  is  not  on  account  of  inferiority  that  they 
are  excluded  from  the  tables,  but  solely  because  they  are  only  indus- 
trious reproductions,  and  analysis  of  them  would  be  superfluous. 

No  tabular  classification  of  the  Indian  rugs  is  given,  nor  is  any 
attempt  made  to  set  forth  the  details  of  their  construction  in  the 
textile  tables,  for  the  reason  that,  as  now  woven,  they  are  not  the 
original  products,  but  are  made  in  grades  arranged  merely  upon 
a  trade  basis.  The  details,  therefore,  are  much  alike  in  all.  The 
chapter  on  Indian  carpets  contains  sufficient  indication  of  the  nature 
and  comparative  merits  of  the  staple  output 


iri 


IX 

CAUCASIAN 

THE  region  lying  on  both  sides  of  the  Caucasus  Mountains 
and  bounded  on  the  west  by  the  Black  Sea  and  the  Turkish 
frontier,  on  the  south  by  Persia  and  on  the  east  by  the 
Caspian,  has  been  an  undisputed  Russian  possession  for  almost  a  cen- 
tury. Prior  to  that  parts  of  it  had  changed  hands  from  time  to  time 
between  the  Turks  and  Persians,  and  in  the  early  stages  of  rug  im- 
portation to  America  its  fabrics  were  known  as  Turkish  textiles. 
They  were  more  widely  used  than  those  of  Persia  or  the  Anatolian 
Peninsula,  and  are  still  often  referred  to,  in  a  general  way,  as  Turkish 
rugs.  This  is  due  partly  to  the  tenacity  of  custom  and  partly  to  the 
unwillingness  of  the  dealers  to  sacrifice  any  whit  of  the  fascination 
which  clings  to  a  purely  Oriental  name.  "Caucasian  rugs"  unques- 
tionably sounds  cold,  bleak  and  Russian.  There  is  in  it  no  sugges- 
tion of  the  warm,  languorous  Eastern  life  of  which  the  word  Turkish 
is  so  eloquent,  though  these  Caucasian  fabrics  have  in  them  perhaps 
more  of  pure  Oriental  decoration  than  many  which  rejoice  in  more 
luxurious  titles. 

But  there  is  about  the  fabrics  from  this  section  so  much  that  is 
distinctive,  and  their  kinship  is  so  plainly  traceable,  that  they  merit  a 
more  modern  and  more  accurate  classification.     They  are  essentially 


CAUCASIAN 

as  well  as  geographically,  Caucasian  rugs,  and  have  a  character  of 
their  own,  wholly  different  from  that  of  most  of  the  fabrics  now  made 
in  Turkey  proper. 

The  Caucasian  marks  have,  too,  been  so  communicated  to  the 
rugs  of  the  district  lying  to  the  west,  in  old  Armenia  and  Mesopota- 
mia, that  I  have  felt  compelled  to  class  the  so-called  Mosul  products 
as  of  the  Caucasian  order,  despite  the  fact  that  the  Mosul  territory 
Is  on  the  Turkish  side  of  the  boundary,  and,  further,  that  in  design 
many  of  the  Mosul  rugs  present  Persian  elements  in  a  coarse  form. 

The  general  groups  comprised  in  the  Caucasian  class  are,  there- 
fore, the  Daghestan,  Transcaucasian  and  Mosul  fabrics. 

DAGHESTAN  FABRICS 

For  thorough  workmanship,  harmony  of  color,  and  adherence 
to  traditional  design,  some  of  the  floor  coverings  grouped  under  the 
general  head  of  Daghestan  ^re  unexcelled.  The  district  from  which 
they  are  named  is  a  three-cornered  bit  of  country  east  of  the  Cauca- 
sus, wedged  into  the  angle  which  the  mountains  make  with  the  Cas- 
pian Sea.  The  many  tribes  which  once  maintained  their  autonomies, 
small  and  great,  within  the  confines  of  the  region  had  different  lan- 
guages, or  in  any  case  different  dialects,  and  some  of  them,  it  is  re- 
corded, had  no  written  forms.  The  vigorous  Russification  to  which 
they  have  been  subjected  since  the  conquest — conquest  against  which 
they  warred  long  and  sturdily — has  given  them  a  common  language 
and  a  spur  to  industry.  It  has  shown  them  the  road  to  market,  but, 
save  in  that  increased  production  has  been  attended  by  something  of 
the  universal  decline  in  quality,  it  has  not  changed  in  any  important 
particular  the  character  of  the  weavings. 

The  Daghestan  rugs  have,  in  fact,  shown  closer  adherence  to  old 

standards  than  those  of  almost  any  Eastern  provinces.     In  their  work 

103 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

these  Daghestan  weavers  are  patient  and  painstaking.  Among  the 
mountaineers,  sometimes,  the  leisure  of  two  or  three  years  is  spent  in 
the  making  of  a  single  rug.  The  region  is  one  of  the  few  which  have 
not  changed  the  whole  character  of  their  industry,  under  the  induce- 
ments which  recent  years  have  offered.  As  in  Persia,  towns  and  dis- 
tricts which  are  only  a  little  way  apart  follow  altogether  different 
models  in  their  rug-making,  and  show  no  inclination  to  depart  from 
their  respective  customs,  although  communication  is  much  easier  now 
than  it  was  before  the  Russian  occupation. 

Daghestan  Proper. — The  proper  Daghestan  rugs  can  be  singled 
out  from  all  the  fabrics  of  the  East,  almost  unerringly,  if  one  fact  be 
borne  in  mind — that  they  are  made  in  imitation  of  jewels,  or,  some  main- 
tain, of  mosaics.  They  show  it  at  a  glance.  They  have  all  the  bril- 
liancy, accuracy,  and  clean  cutting  that  either  idea  suggests.  Their 
whole  effect  is  one  of  geometrical  cleanness  and  clear  atmosphere. 
They  are  illustrative,  to  the  last  degree,  of  the  pure  ornamental  forms 
of  the  Mohammedan  East.  The  geometrical  finds  its  best  expres- 
sion in  them.  Only  occasionally,  to  adorn  the  border  stripes  or  to 
break  up  some  annoying  expanse  of  ground  color,  is  the  floral  form 
resorted  to,  and  then  it  is  severely  conventional.  The  colors,  too,  are 
positive ;  the  transitions  and  contrasts  are  pronounced.  There  is  no 
shading  off  from  one  hue  to  another.  All  this  would  result  in  harsh- 
ness were  it  not  for  the  masterly  adjustment  of  color  values  and  areas. 
The  completeness  and  perfect  balance  of  the  Daghestan  are  its  charm. 

While  the  designs  vary  much  in  detail,  the  class  character  is 
plain  in  them  all.  Beyond  the  geometrical  nature  of  their  figures,  it 
may  be  said  that  their  common  feature  is  the  universal  use  they  make 
of  the  angular  hook,  which  may  be  called  a  "  latch-hook,"  and  which 
seems  to  be  an  outgrowth  of  the  Chinese  fret.  In  different  forms  it 
appears  in  all  the  Daghestan  fabrics,  and  in  some  of  the  Asia  Minor 
and  Turkoman  rugs  as  well,  but  in  the  Daghestan  proper  its  develop- 

104 


(/■»-;!     TZ  ;;rAiT 


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1 1  nwijii  *•»«>■  Bnnvc-s-n^^ 


Plate  XI.    Ispahan  Carpet,  Sixteenth  Century 

h  .ir^  16.2  X  7.1  differed 

From  the  Marquand  Collection 

A  beautiful  survival  of  the  great  epoch  in  Persian  history—the  period  of 
the  Sufi  reigns,  when  art  and  poetry  were  paramount  in  the  popular  life.  The 
carpet  has  much  of  the  fine  quality  of  the  Ardebil  (Plate  XXII). 

The  lotus  forms  and  cloud  band,  which  were  introduced  into  Persian 
design  from  the  East,  are  here,  and  they  are  in  the  Ardebil  carpet,  but  not  in 
the  Titanic  size  or  bold  color  which  they  bore  fifty  years  afterwards,  and  which 
they  still  retain  in  the  big  carpets  of  modern  Persia.  There  is  also  discernible 
in  the  border,  in  minute  form,  the  lancet  leaf,  and,  as  dominant  factors,  the 
lioldjrosette  and  palmetjte,  in  alternation^  all  of  which  were  combined  to  make 
the  regulation  Herati  design  of  later  times. 

'.'That  the  weavers  of  the  capital — for  it  seems  past  question  that  the  car- 
petSTJof  this  class  were  made  on  the  palace  looms  of  Ispahan — still  worked  with 
a  masterly  comprehension  of  ultimate  general  effect,  is  further  proven  by  the 
emphases  in  the  field  of  this  rug.  These  are  effected  in  the  simplest  manner, 
by  projecting  a  very  few  of  the  leaf  and  flower  forms  in  the  centre  and  at  the 
ends  of  the  field  in  stronger  and  darker  color.  In  the  centre  a  perfect  medal- 
lion effect  is  thus  secured  without  the  use  of  any  cumbrous  outline  figure,  and 
at  the  ends,  by  the  aid  of  the  palmette  shape  and  the  leaf,  the  accent  is  carried 
into  the  corners  and  a  clever  harmony  established  between  the  field  and  the 
deep  green  and  more  pronounced  pattern  of  the  border." 


i  of  their 

.  cjiUed 
h  ol  ti  '-  forms 


z 
< 


z 
(Jj 


CAUCASIAN  \ 

ment  is  probably  more  complete  than  in  any  other  rugs,  with  t\it 
possible  exception  of  some  Yomuds  and  the  Shirvans  and  Soumaks, 
which  so  far  as  design  is  concerned  are  of  the  same  general  family. 
In  the  Daghestans  this  hook  is  used  for  every  purpose.  It  is  attached 
to  almost  every  figure  by  way  of  finish ;  it  serrates  the  borders  of 
large  geometrical  shapes,  and  softens  the  contrast  between  two  ad- 
joining fields  of  color  without  making  its  hard  self  apparent.  It  is  a 
well  chosen  agent  to  produce  the  delicate,  harmonious  effect  which  main^ 
tains  in  the  Daghestans  despite  their  subservience  to  the  straight  line. 

A  characteristic  design  in  Daghestans  presents,  upon  a  field  of 
rather  light  blue,  a  central  oblong,  set  transversely,  and  flanked,  at  either 
end  of  the  rug,  by  elongated  octagons  of  old  ivory,  bound  about  with 
bands  of  red,  which  extend  from  the  oblong.  These  three  main  fig- 
ures are  divided  and  sub-divided  according  to  the  Daghestan  method, 
into  multicolored  geometrical  shapes,  the  edges  of  all  of  which  are 
trimmed  with  the  inevitable  latch-hook.  Finally,  the  innermost  fig- 
ure is  a  diamond,  filled  with  a  lattice-work  of  tiny  crosses,  of  alternate 
red  and  blue  upon  a  field  of  wool  white.  The  corners  of  the  central 
field,  left  by  the  two  great  octagons,  are  taken  up  by  triangles  and  stripe 
effects,  with  the  hook  again  softening  all. 

Many  colors  serve  to  diversify  the  inner  figures  of  the  design, 
but  they  are  all  carefully  subordinated  to  the  tonic  color.  The  bor- 
der is  made  up  of  three  main  stripes,  separated  and  bounded  by  a 
liberal  number  of  narrower  stripes  in  solid  colors,  many  of  them  with- 
out pattern.  The  effect  of  this  is  to  emphasize  the  geometrical 
suggestion,  and  yet  remove  the  heavy,  hard  effect  of  three  large 
stripes,  one  beside  the  other,  unbroken  save  by  the  rectilinear  patterns 
which  they  carry.  The  ground  of  the  middle  or  main  stripe,  in  the 
example  now  in  mind — which,  it  is  almost  needless  to  say,  is  not  the 
one  used  in  the  illustration — is  of  ivory,  and  that  of  the  supporting 
stripes  the  deepest  and  richest  of  old  green,  of  a  value  to  balance  the 

105 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

re  1  of  the  central  oblong.  Upon  the  green  is  a  running  Greek  pat- 
tern, and  the  main  border  carries  in  repetition,  in  alternate  red  and 
green,  a  variation  of  the  swastika.  Here  it  is  laid  in  angle-wise,  and 
is  further  ornamented  by  the  addition  of  the  latch-hook.  A  narrow 
band  of  light  red  frames  the  whole.  Oftentimes  the  central  ground 
has,  in  lieu  of  large  geometrical  figures,  a  lattice-work  of  diamond 
shapes  made  up  of  latch-hooks.  Within  every  lozenge  is  a  small 
geometrical  figure,  divided  into  harmonious  colors,  and  with  its  edges 
further  adorned  with  the  hooks  in  very  diminutive  size.  This  latticed 
central  ground  is  especially  common  in  the  prayer  rugs.  In  prayer 
rugs  of  other  districts — Ghiordes,  for  example — the  field  is  more  apt 
to  be  of  plain  color,  unbroken  save  by  the  religious  emblems  at  the 
top,  bottom,  and  sides. 

The  Daghestans  were  probably  the  first  of  the  Oriental  fabrics 
to  become  popular  in  America.  A  large  proportion  of  the  rugs  in 
use  in  American  houses  to-day,  which  were  purchased  more  than 
twenty-five  years  ago,  are  of  this  variety.  At  that  time  they  sold  for 
a  song,  and  fifteen  dollars  would  buy  a  Daghestan  prayer  rug  which 
cannot  now  be  had  for  five  times  that  sum.  Their  value  is  vastly 
enhanced  by  the  stubbornness  of  the  native  in  this  part  of  the  Cau- 
casus. He  refuses  to  lend  himself  to  the  making  of  the  enormous 
carpets  for  which  there  is  now  such  demand,  and  sticks  to  the  small 
rug  sizes  which  his  forbears  made  for  their  own  use.  Nor  will  he,  as  a 
rule,  consent  that  the  character  of  his  work  shall  be  debauched.  The 
result  is  that  he  cannot  keep  pace  with  the  demand — a  demand  created 
solely  by  the  ancient  purity  and  honesty  of  his  fabrics.  Hence, 
the  number  of  genuine  specimens  of  this  variety  now  imported  is  by 
no  means  in  proportion  to  that  of  other  rugs,  and  the  price  for  the 
real  article  is  commensurately  high.  In  a  lot  of  three  or  four  hundred 
Caucasian  rugs  of  small  sizes  it  is  not  usual  to  find  more  than  half  a 
dozen  thoroughly  good  Daghestans.    Other  Caucasian  fabrics,  resem- 

lo6 


CAUCASIAN 

bling  them  in  color  and  design,  but  in  no  wise  their  equals  in  any 
respect,  are  sold  masquerading  under  the  Daghestan  name. 

Genuine  Daghestans  are  made,  warp,  weft  and  pile,  of  the  best 
wool,  and  are  tied  with  the  Ghiordes  knot.  They  have  usually  from 
sixteen  to  twenty-four  threads  of  warp  to  the  inch — from  sixty-four  to 
one  hundred  and  forty-four  knots  to  the  square  inch — which  makes  it 
possible  to  work  out  quite  minute  patterns.  The  warp  is  most  often 
of  gray  wool;  the  ends  are  finished  in  a  narrow  woven  selvage,  outside 
of  which  the  warp  is  thrown  into  a  knotted  fringe.  The  sides  have 
a  fine  selvage,  usually  colored  and  made  of  extra  threads. 

Derbend. — The  general  features  of  the  Daghestan  are  repeated, 
in  much  coarser  form,  in  the  handiwork  of  the  Tartar  and  Turkoman 
inhabitants  of  the  walled  city  of  Derbend  and  the  outlying  country 
up  and  down  the  Caspian.  This  prosperous  town  on  the  sea  coast  is 
the  capital  of  the  province.  It  was  also  capital  of  old  Albania,  and 
in  1722  was  taken  by  Peter  the  Great.  The  regulation  rug  of  the 
Derbend  variety  is  merely  a  copy  of  the  Daghestan,  but  upon  a  heav- 
ier scale.  It  is  of  greater  size,  the  pile  is  longer,  the  figures  not  so 
finely  wrought,  the  colors  fewer,  cruder  and  bolder.  It  partakes  of 
the  character  of  the  Kazak.  Blue,  white,  red  and  yellow  predomi- 
nate, but  the  fine  harmony  of  the  Daghestan  is  missing.  The  surface 
has  a  noticeable  lustre  like  that  found  in  many  rugs  of  Mosul. 

The  Turkoman  influence  has  substituted  in  some  of  the  Der- 
bend rugs  a  goat's-hair  warp  for  the  fine  wool  of  the  Daghestans ;  the 
fringe  is,  therefore,  darker  in  hue  and  wilder  in  appearance  than  that 
of  the  more  finished  product.  Usually  there  are  four  rows  of  knots 
in  the  solid  selvage  at  the  ends,  from  which  the  fringe  grows  out,  but 
not  infrequently  the  warp  and  the  dyed  weft  are  woven  together  in  a 
broad  web  after  the  fashion  which  the  Turkomans  learned  in  their 
wild  home  on  the  plateaus  of  Central  Asia. 

The  Derbends  are  essentially  floor  rugs,  and  are  made  thicker 

107 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

and  in  larger  sizes  for  the  purpose.  From  an  artistic  standpoint  they 
are  mediocre ;  they  are  poor  Daghestan  and  not  particularly  good 
nomad.  They  usually  have  for  main  design  a  large  star  or  some 
other  geometrical  figure  repeated  three  or  four  times  transversely  on 
a  field  of  blue  or  red.  The  figures  alternate  in  color,  red  and  saffron 
yellow  predominating  if  the  field  be  blue,  blue  and  yellow  if  it  be  red. 
Each  is  divided  into  other  geometrical  figures,  in  all  of  which  the 
latch-hook  plays  an  important  part.  The  separate  Kazak  figures  are 
sometimes  seen.  The  border  stripes,  as  in  all  the  Caucasians,  are 
clearly  defined  and  their  patterns  pronounced. 

Kabistan. — An  error  in  a  single  letter — whose  error  or  when  com- 
mitted it  is  impossible  to  tell — has  obscured  for  years  the  origin  of 
these  admirable  rugs.  Kubistan  would  have  told  the  story  to  any 
one  who  cared  enough  about  it  to  study  the  Caucasus.  The  name 
Kabistan  has  become  a  fixture  in  the  rug  trade,  and  is  here  permitted 
to  remain  only  on  the  ground  before  defined,  because  a  substitute 
of  the  right  name  for  the  wrong  would  be  confusing  to  many.  In  the 
towns  of  the  Caucasus,  the  title  Kabistan  is  unknown,  save  to  dealers, 
who  through  executing  orders  for  purchasers  are  constantly  in  com- 
munication with  Constantinople  merchants.  A  gentleman  at  whose 
house  I  visited  in  Batoum  showed  me  his  collection  of  rugs,  many  of 
them  gathered  twelve  or  fifteen  years  ago,  when  the  rug-making  had 
not  become  a  commercial  affair.  Among  them  was  a  fine  specimen 
of  what  we  know  as  Kabistan.  When  I  praised  it  by  that  name  he 
said,  **  No.  That's  one  of  your  American  inventions.  Those  rugs 
come  from  Kuba,  down  in  the  southeastern  part  of  Daghestan.  They 
are  considered  about  the  best  fabrics  made  in  the  Caucasus."         ^^*-=*^ 

I  was  told  later  in  the  bazaars  of  Tiflis,  also,  that  the  rugs  were 
made  in  the  Kuba  district,  of  which  the  town  of  Kuba  is  the  capital. 
It  lies  on  the  slopes  of  the  Baba  Dagh,  and  almost  directly  over  the 
Caucasus  range  northward  from  Shirvan. 

1 08 


CAUCASIAN 

In  point  of  workmanship  the  Kabistans  equal  the  Daghestan 
proper.  In  texture,  indeed,  they  are  finer  ;  in  design,  more  diversified. 
In  some  very  fine  pieces  the  elaboration  and  coloring  are  really  Persian. 
For  hard  wear  under  foot  they  are  not  as  desirable  as  the  Derbend. 
They  have  a  wholesome  plentitude  of  color,  in  the  same  general  tone 
as  the  Daghestan,  but  lack  in  some  measure  the  glow  and  brilliancy. 
This  results  from  the  sparing  use  of  white  to  produce  areas  of  high 
light,  and  of  reds.  They  follow  more  commonly  the  Persian  tendency 
to  the  use  of  dark  blues  in  the  ground,  which  imparts  to  them  a  sober 
richness.  The  patterns  in  many  of  these  are  identical  with  those  of 
the  Daghestans,  though  they  have  on  the  other  hand  many  designs 
borrowed  from  other  sources.  The  elongated  star  as  a  dominant 
figure  is  frequent.  It  is  customary  to  find  this  repeated  thrice,  trans- 
versely of  the  field,  in  the  sedjadeh,  and  a  diamond  shape  of  smaller 
size  at  each  end  ;  sometimes  there  are  even  smaller  diamonds  linking 
the  main  figures  together.  Again,  and  it  is  a  standard  substitute  for 
this  pattern,  three  large  diamond  figures  are  found,  with  the  field 
space  which  they  do  not  cover  filled  in  with  the  ubiquitous  pear  pat- 
tern, diversely  figured  and  adorned.  The  Kuba  weavers  seem  to  have 
caught  a  penchant  for  the  use  of  this  device  from  the  Persians,  once 
their  masters  and  within  easy  reach  of  whom  they  dwell.'  They  use 
it  in  many  ways  ;  a  not  uncommon  arrangement  is  to  fill  the  entire  field 
with  it,  repeated  in  transverse  rows.  Above  and  underneath  each  row 
runs  a  regular,  serrate  line,  or  rather  pattern,  across  the  body  of  the 
rug,  the  upward  angles  pointing  between  the  pears,  and  the  pears  of 
the  next  lower  row  taking  their  places  beneath  the  same  angles.  This, 
it  will  be  seen,  throws  the  pears  into  diagonal  rows.  The  effect  is 
suggestive  of  the  pear  designs  in  many  of  the  fabrics  of  Persia,  where 
it  belongs,  especially  in  the  Saraband  and  Shiraz,  and  the  alternate 
arrangement  of  the  same  pattern  in  the  rugs  of  Khorassan. 

'  Eveo  to  this  day  a  colony  of  fire-worshippers  exists  in  Baku. 

109 


X 


J 


( 


O  RI  E  NTAL    RUGS 

The  stripe,  for  a  central  device  as  well  as  a  border  element,  is 
popular  among  the  makers  of  the  Kabistans.  In  some  cases  it  is 
clearly  defined,  and  not  merely  an  effect  produced  by  the  arrange- 
ment of  the  patterns.  Sometimes  the  whole  field  of  a  rug  is  divided 
into  perpendicular  stripes  of  different  colors.  In  such  cases  extraor- 
dinary taste  and  skill  are  displayed  in  maintaining  harmonious  tone 
in  the  entire  fabric.  Where,  for  example,  the  prevailing  tint  is  a 
pale  fawn,  intensified  in  places  to  a  decided  brown,  only  two  or  three 
of  all  the  stripes  are  put  in  red  or  blue  for  the  sake  of  accent.  Each 
is  shaded  so  skilfully  that  sometimes  the  color  seems  almost  to  have 
vanished  ;  then  it  returns  to  a  deep  value.  It  suggests  a  dyer's  sam- 
ples. There  are  sudden  breakings  off  from  pale  brown  into  some 
equitable  value  of  dull  red  or  old  rose,  from  which  the  stripe  is  gradu- 
ally worked  back  to  its  original  hue,  by  the  most  delicate  shading,  a 
trick  rarely  if  ever  employed  in  pure  Daghestans.  Each  stripe  car- 
ries some  small  decorative  pattern  throughout  its  entire  length.  The 
pear,  wherever  used,  is  more  or  less  rectilinear,  and  broken  in  the 
manner  peculiar  to  Caucasian  figures.  The  borders  in  many  cases 
have  rude  bird  and  animal  shapes  similar  to  those  found  in  nomad 
rugs ;  and  these  will  sometimes  be  found  adorning  the  geometrical 
medallions  thrown  in  upon  the  body  of  the  carpet.  One  essentially 
Caucasian  feature,  although  it  is  found  in  the  Yomud  weavings,  on 
the  other  side  of  the  Caspian,  and  in  the  rugs  of  Turkoman  nomads  of 
Laristan  and  Farsistan,  in  Persia,  is  the  "  barber  pole"  stripe  occurring 
in  the  borders.  The  component  diagonal  stripes  forming  it  are  red  and 
white,  or  blue  and  white,  alternately,  and  frequently  carry  tiny  pat- 
terns of  their  own.  In  the  border  stripes  the  Kabistans  are  notably 
rich,  following  generally  the  rectilinear  Daghestan  patterns. 

The  skill  of  the  weavers  of  these  rugs  is  conclusively  shown  in 
the  close  and  even  clipping  of  the  pile.  Only  the  Tekkes  and  Sehnas 
excel  the  Kabistans  in  this  respect ;  certainly  no  variety  of  Caucasian 

1X0 


CAUCASIAN 

or  Turkish  fabrics  does,  unless  it  be  some  of  the  particularly  fine  Ghi- 
ordes  or  Kulah  antiques.  This  close  trimming  makes  them  flexible, 
and  impairs  in  a  measure  their  durability  as  floor  coverings ;  but  it 
serves  to  bring  out  with  fine  clearness  the  minutest  details  of  the  de- 
sign, and  adds  to  their  beauty  when  employed  as  covers  fc  r  divans  or 
tables. 

The  similarity  of  many  Kabistan  rugs  to  the  Daghestans  in 
quality,  design  and  color  enables  dealers  to  sell  o  le  for  the  other,  but 
they  may  almost  always  be  distinguished  by  the  fact  that  Kabistans 
are  overcast  at  the  side,  or  if  selvaged  the  selvage  is  made  with  the 
cotton  weft,  while  the  Daghestan  selvage  is  of  fine,  extra,  colored 
wool  yarn ;  and  further,  that  while  in  the  Kabistans  the  weft  and 
sometimes  the  warp  is  of  cotton  cord,  like  most  of  the  Persian  r.igs, 
the  Daghestan  has  for  both  warp  and  weft  the  best  of  wool.  Herein, 
too,  lies  one  element  of  the  narrow  margin  of  superiority  of  the 
Daghestan  over  its  neighbor,  in  point  of  durability.  Genuine  rugs 
of  either  variety  will  wear  away  down  to  the  warp  and  still  retain 
xheir  harmony  of  color,  enhanced  rather  than  diminished  by  age  and 
service. 

Very  recently  the  Kuba  weavers  have  taken  to  putting  a 
"  body  finish  "  on  the  sides  of  their  rugs.  The  pile  is  carried  out  to 
the  last  thread  of  the  warp  save  one,  and  the  weft,  passing  around 
this,  makes  a  cording.  The  ends  have  the  narrow  cloth  webbing  and 
the  warp-threads  are  left  loose  to  form  a  fringe. 

"  Tzitzi"  or  Tchetchen. — "Tzitzi,"  or  "Chichi,"  the  name  given 
in  the  trade  to  the  textiles  of  certain  tribes  and  some  colonies  of 
sedentary  artisans,  is  a  corruption  of  Tchetchen,  the  tribe  whose  chief 
habitat  is  in  the  mountains  north  of  Daghestan.  The  nomad  ten- 
dency to  individual  conceit  in  design  is  apparent  in  many  "  Tzitzis." 
Moving  from  place  to  place,  too,  these  rovers  who  make  them  pick  up 
suggestions  from  this  or  that  wandering  company  of  shepherds  with 

III 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

whom  they  come  in  contact.  These  patterns,  therefore,  vary  indef- 
initely, and  this  very  condition  is  made  a  cloak  to  enable  unscrupulous 
dealers  to  sell  as  "  Tzitzi "  the  products  of  other  districts.  Genuine 
**  Tzitzi,"  of  which  the  older  examples  are  as  good  rugs  as  need  be, 
will  be  found  to  conform  in  certain  points  to  the  Caucasian  notions 
of  ornamentation,  although  strangely  enough  a  marked  Persian  ten- 
dency is  to  be  noticed.  The  ground  is  frequently  filled  with  small 
patterns — rosettes,  scrolls,  compact  geometrical  tree  patterns,  pears, 
and  so  forth — arranged  in  a  manner  similar  to  that  of  Kabistans  and 
some  Kurdistans.  For  want  of  other  name  this  may  be  called  a  grill 
pattern.  Usually  the  transverse  line  separating  the  rows  in  the 
"  Tzitzi "  is  straight  instead  of  serrate,  as  it  is  in  the  Kabistans. 

Other  pieces  have  two  or  more  main  figures,  crosses,  oblongs, 
stars  or  something  of  the  sort,  composing  the  central  design,  as  in  the 
Daghestans,  and  the  remainder  of  the  ground  filled  in  with  varied 
figures,  disconnected  and  usually  of  the  conventionalized  flower 
order.  There  is  a  generous  allowance  of  border  stripes,  three  and 
sometimes  four,  their  patterns  alternating  between  geometrical  and 
floral  devices.  The  reciprocal  trefoil,  to  which  reference  is  made  in 
connection  with  the  rugs  of  Karabagh,  is  extremely  frequent  here. 
The  general  tone  of  the  "  Tzitzis  "  is  dark  and  seemly.  Blue  predomi- 
nates as  a  ground  color.  Some  few  specimens  are  in  a  higher  key  by 
reason  of  having  pronounced  border  designs  in  bright  yellow. 

To  acquire  a  correct  idea  of  the  tribes  who  make  the  "  Tzitzi " 
rugs  discrimination  must  be  made  between  nomads  and  nomads. 
These  of  the  Caucasus  of  the  present  day  must  not  be  confused  with 
the  lawless  Bedouins  of  Mesopotamia,  the  turbulent  vagrants  who 
infest  Kirman,  or  the  restless  Tartars  who  live  by  foray  throughout 
Turkestan. 

The  Tchetchen  nomads  inhabiting  these  northern  hills  move  with 
their  flocks  in  quest  of  food  and  water,  and  the  sphere  of  their  wan- 

112 


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U3 


CAUCASIAN 

derings  is  seldom  more  than  a  hundred  square  miles.  Winter  finds 
them  in  the  lowlands ;  spring  sees  them  starting  with  their  sheep  for 
the  hills  again.  The  plateau  where  a  flock  is  pastured  is  the  tem- 
porary domain  of  the  tribe.     The  individual  holds  no  land. 

There  have  been  wild  wars  between  these  shepherd  tribes  in  the 
past,  but  the  Russian  government  is  scattering  so  thoroughly  the 
seeds  of  civilization  that  it  is  doubtful  if  at  the  end  of  the  next  decade 
aught  will  remain  here  of  the  strange  tribal  life  which  has  prevailed 
since  the  dawn  of  history. 

Tcherkess  or  Circassian. — The  Tcherkess  rugs  are  few  in 
American  and  European  markets  now,  and  good  reason  is  found  in 
the  fact  that  the  Tcherkess  people,  as  a  people,  is  routed,  dissolved, 
destroyed.  This  sturdy,  comely,  and  unprincipled  race,  whose  women 
filled  the  seraglios  and  whose  men  the  guards  of  the  Turkish  Sultans, 
and  whose  long,  fierce  struggle  against  Russian  supremacy  amazed 
Europe,  is  to-day  as  a  race  extinct.  Finding  it  impossible  to  with- 
stand the  Muscovite,  almost  the  whole  people — half  a  million  of  them 
at  least — went  out  in  one  great,  wretched  exodus  from  their  native 
land,  vanquished,  heart-broken,  desperate,  but  bound  not  to  serve  the 
infidels.  The  two  hundred  miles  of  country  which  they  had  occupied, 
stretching  along  the  Caucasus  and  to  the  shores  of  the  Black  Sea,  is 
to-day  unpeopled,  save  for  a  tribe  or  two  of  mixed  Circassian  blood, 
and  a  handful  of  Russians  or  German  immigrants  huddled  here  and 
there.  When  in  1864-5-6  these  exiles  came  strolling  through  Ana- 
tolia they  were  beggared,  bereft  of  everything  in  the  way  of  earthly 
goods  and  lived  in  predatory  fashion,  stealing  where  chance  offered. 
They  housed  themselves,  as  do  the  meanest  of  our  immigrant  labor- 
ers, in  huts  they  made  of  sods  and  clay.  With  part  of  their  scant 
gains  they  bought  cheap  yarns  and  wove  rugs  for  coverings.  Little 
Turkish  children  watched  with  wonder  the  weavings  of  these  strang- 
ers, so  different  from  any  fabrics  ever  seen  in  that  part  of  the  country 

113 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

before,  and  the  Turkish  mothers  worried  for  fear  the  visitors  should 
steal  the  toddlers,  as  was  reported,  and  truthfully,  to  be  the  custom  of 
their  home-land. 

In  the  carpets  which  the  vagrants  made  there  was  small  and  rude 
pretence  at  design.  Sometimes,  since  dyeing  involved  cost,  they 
wove  simply  of  white  woollen  or  cotton  yarn,  with  no  sign  of  color 
and  no  pattern  at  all.  Even  in  the  most  pretentious  of  their  fabrics 
white  areas  were  frequent,  and  the  few  tints  used  were  of  the  most 
elementary  kind.  Rugs  of  the  same  sort  filter  into  the  Constanti- 
nople markets  nowadays,  and  in  bales  of  other  weavings  come,  one  or 
two  at  a  time,  to  this  country.  We  might  know  from  these  creations, 
even  if  history  were  silent  on  the  subject,  that  the  Circassian  specialty 
was  belligerence  rather  than  decorative  art,  but  in  the  devices  them- 
selves there  is  evident  effort  to  copy,  or  possibly  to  reproduce  from 
memory,  both  Caucasian  and  North  Persian  elements.  Everything 
is  positive  and  abrupt,  an  effect  which  is  heightened  by  the  lavish  use 
of  white. 

A  prayer  rug  of  this  type,  which  may  be  taken  as  representative, 
has  the  central  field  divided  transversely  into  two  parts  by  an  attenu- 
ate form  of  the  Mongolian  cloud-band,  which  also,  from  its  peculiar 
shape,  forms  the  arch.  Above  this  ground  the  line  is  black.  In  it, 
arranged  in  diagonal  rows,  are  small  diamond  shapes.  Their  edges 
are  heavily  indented,  which  gives  them  a  cruciform  effect,  and  in  the 
centre  of  each  is  a  small  figure  of  like  shape,  but  another  color.  Pre- 
cisely the  same  device  is  found  covering  the  central  field  of  Kazak 
odjakliks  and  elsewhere  in  the  Caucasian  and  Kurdish  fabrics.  The 
colors  used  for  it  in  the  Tcherkess  rugs  are  many,  but  all  rudimentary. 
Whether  or  no  these  small  devices  are  here  intended  for  stars,  shining 
upon  the  blackness  of  night,  it  is  difficult  to  say.  They  give  that 
suggestion.  A  like  idea,  but  more  artistically  wrought  out,  is  to  be 
found  now  and  then  in  Asia  Minor  prayer  rugs. 

114 


CAUCASIAN 

At  the  very  top  of  the  field,  and  on  either  side  of  the  ends  of  the 
spandrel,  are  heavy  trees  of  the  cypress  shape,  but  with  jagged  out- 
lines. The  two  lower  ones  are  in  dull  red  and  the  upper  one  in  green. 
All  are  heavily  defined  in  white.  The  middle  of  the  foliage  area  is 
variegated  by  the  small,  parti-colored  patterns.  In  the  field,  under- 
neath, the  tree  principle,  which  in  some  form  is  found  in  almost  all 
prayer  rugs,  is  presented  in  the  same  fashion  as  those  above.  The 
centre  tree  is  blue,  outlined  in  white,  and  the  ground-color  of  the 
field  is  dull  red.  The  foliage  of  the  tree  is  set  off  into  perpendicu- 
lar stripes,  in  which  are  repeated  the  small  figures  found  above. 
Beside  this,  one  on  either  side,  are  two  smaller  trees  of  a  yellow  shade, 
and  above  them  two  small  shapes  woven  in  red,  like  ladders  of  three 
rounds.  The  border  has  a  heavy,  flowerless,  yellow  vine  on  a  ground 
of  blue.  The  ends  carry  a  well-made  knot-fringe,  and  the  sides  an 
added  selvage  of  cotton.  The  rug  throughout  is  of  wool  and  is 
excellent  in  point  of  quality.  The  impression  it  conveys  is  that  of  large 
feeling  and  inspiration,  and  of  infinite  care ;  but  the  breadth  of  the 
conception  is  neutralized  by  dearth  of  executive  skill.  The  lack  of 
manual  facility  and  of  schooling  in  the  weaver's  finer  art  is  manifest. 
There  is  no  touch  of  even  semi-professional  dexterity  about  it.  It  is 
the  home-made  product. 

An  odjaklik  of  the  same  sort,  offered  for  sale  as  "  Malgaran," 
had  great  triangles  of  black,  blue,  red,  yellow  and  green  upon  its  cen- 
tral field  of  time-stained  white,  so  arranged  as  to  effect  the  "  double- 
end"  formation.  Both  these  and  the  space  remaining  in  the  field 
were  strewn  with  minute  patterns  like  those  in  the  prayer  rug,  rudely 
woven  in  many  colors.  The  inner  border  was  a  simple  key  pattern  •, 
the  outer,  or  main  stripe,  the  vine. 

Among  certain  dealers  in  rugs  in  America  the  term  "  Malgaran  " 
has  also  been  used  to  indicate  these  rugs,  as  well  as  certain  of 
the  Samarkand  carpets  and   other  Central  Asia  products  allied  to 

"5 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

them.  The  reason  for  this  is  plain.  The  Malakan  or  Malgaran  peo- 
ple, another  element  in  what  Leroy-Beaulieu  calls  "  The  Babel  of  the 
Caucasus,"  have  always  been  and  are  to-day  the  carriers  of  the  region. 
In  the  early  days  of  rug  exportation  from  the  Caucasus,  when  the 
railroad  ran  only  as  far  as  Tiflis,  the  Malakans  brought  the  rugs  there 
in  their  four-wheeled  fulgons  for  shipment,  and  no  name  being  then 
forthcoming,  they  went  out  under  the  distorted  title  of  Malgarans. 
Their  coming  to  the  West  from  that  section  led  to  the  belief  that  they 
were  made  somewhere  in  Central  Asia,  and  since  that  time  the 
Armenian  dealers  have  made  of  "  Malgaran  "  an  omnibus  name  for 
all  the  odds  and  ends  of  unidentified  Asiatic  weaving. 

TRANSCAUCASIAN  FABRICS 

One  might  suppose  that,  shut  off  from  their  Daghestan  neigh- 
bors by  so  grim  a  barrier  as  the  main  chain  of  the  Caucasus,  the 
weaving  peoples  of  the  lower  districts  would  have  looked  to  Persia 
for  artistic  inspiration,  and  that  their  textiles  would  rather  have  fol- 
lowed the  patterns  of  Kirman,  Sehna  or  Feraghan  than  the  severe 
models  of  the  North.  But  it  is  not  so  ;  the  majority  of  Transcaucasian 
rugs  are  more  in  conformity  with  the  Daghestan  theory  of  design 
than  are  some  of  the  products  of  Daghestan  itself. 

They  are  made  on  the  southern  slope  of  the  Caucasus  and  in  the 
country  included  between  the  Kur  and  Aras  rivers.  The  wool  supply 
here  leaves  little  to  be  desired,  since  these  plateaus  are  famous  for  the 
quality  of  their  sheep.  The  old  rugs  of  the  region  generally  are 
marked  by  durability  and  by  the  permanence  and  harmonious  blend- 
ing of  their  colors.  Like  the  Daghestans,  they  were  originally  made 
with  no  thought  that  they  were  to  be  extensively  sold,  and  were  found 
only  in  small  sizes.  Nowadays  nearly  the  whole  output  is  destined 
for  export,  and  rugs  of  all  dimensions  are  produced.  This  is  especially 
true  of  the  Soumaks,  which,  under  the  more  seductive  but  wholly 

1X6 


CAUCASIAN 

erroneous  title  of  "  Kashmir,"  have  attained  wide  popularity.  They 
are  now  made  as  large  as  twelve  by  fifteen  feet. 

Karabagk. — These,  in  point  of  quantity,  constitute  nowadays 
a  very  considerable  portion  of  the  whole  Transcaucasian  output. 
The  old  carpets  of  Karabagh  were  excellent,  although  they  never, 
within  the  memory  of  man,  attained  to  the  high  artistic  standard 
which  has  prevailed  in  the  products  of  cities  farther  south.  The 
finest  of  them  were  still  sufficiently  substantial  to  rank  as  useful 
rather  than  decorative  fabrics.  Competent  judges  declare  them  to 
have  been  better  than  the  best  Kazaks. 

The  old  province  of  Karabagh  lies  to  the  north  of  the  Aras 
river,  in  the  angle  which  that  historic  stream  forms  with  the  Kur.  As 
an  ancient  dependency  of  Persia  it  acquired  the  Iranian  mastery  of 
color,  and  in  the  old  pieces  there  is  as  fine  a  display  of  the  dyer's  skill 
as  in  any  carpet  of  Kirman.  The  floral  elements  entered  in,  too,  but 
most  of  the  forms  were  stiff  and  conventional  and  the  distribution 
was  in  the  manner  peculiar  to  the  Caucasus.  The  rug  weavers  of 
Karabagh  are  divided,  like  those  of  other  provinces,  into  two  classes — 
the  Hats  or  nomads  and  the  Takhta-Kapon  (wooden  door),  which 
signifies  the  villagers,  or  people  who  dwell  in  houses.  Both  are 
Shiah  Mohammedans.  There  are  many  Russian  Armenians,  too,  in 
the  towns.  The  nomad  weavings  have  here,  as  elsewhere,  stood  out 
longest  against  the  tendencies  of  the  time,  and  some  of  them,  even 
now,  are  good  imitations  of  old-time  rugs. 

Since  the  province  passed  out  from  under  Persian  control,  the 
carpets  have  borrowed  more  and  more  from  the  patterns  of  the 
North.  It  is  to  the  North,  now,  that  the  people  turn  as  the  source 
of  power,  authority,  learning,  wealth,  everything.  Some  of  the  later 
rugs  are  good  copies  of  the  Daghestans  in  point  of  design,  and  even 
of  color  arrangement.  But  as  textiles  they  have  neither  the  quality 
nor  the  finish  of  the  genuine  Daghestan.     They  have  the  Daghestan 

1X7 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

brightness,  and  more,  but  their  comparative  coarseness,  and,  it  may  be, 
the  inferor  skill  of  the  dyers,  has  deprived  them  of  all  that  might  be 
termed  fine  effects.  Where  the  Daghestan  is  brilliant,  the  modern 
Karabagh  is  loud,  in  white,  blue,  red  and  yellow.  This  is  caused 
chiefly  by  startling  masses  of  white,  either  in  the  grounds  of  the 
border  or  in  the  central  field. 

The  production  of  Karabaghs,  which  can  be  transported  from 
the  looms  to  the  Russian  railway  in  two  or  three  days,  has  of  late 
been  pushed  forward  without  stint  The  range  of  designs  is  almost 
limitless.  Anything  will  serve.  In  some  of  them  the  field  is  mapped 
off  into  hard  squares,  like  those  of  the  well-known  Bokhara  pattern. 
In  others  there  is  no  pretense  at  body  pattern  at  all,  merely  the 
border  stripes  surrounding  a  field  of  solid  color.  Western  carpets 
and  Wilton  rugs  are  also  copied.  In  yet  others,  set  devices  of  uncer- 
tain origin,  but  strangely  resembling  the  spatter  patterns  seen  in 
modern  China  silks,  are  repeated  in  several  alternating  colors,  and, 
with  little  other  attempt  at  design,  make  up  the  entire  filling  of  the 
rug.  The  effect  is  blotchy,  inconsistent,  and  anything  but  pleasing, 
especially  where,  as  is  often  the  case,  an  effort  is  made  to  retain  in 
the  borders  the  pure  Daghestan  character. 

The  Muscovite  influence  is  perceptible  lately,  in  more  or  less 
successful  attempts  at  genre  figures,  such,  for  example,  as  a  full-length 
representation  of  a  Russian  official,  in  gray  uniform,  and  with  a  red 
and  white  bandanna  protruding  with  most  un-Oriental  suggestion 
from  the  skirt  pocket  of  his  coat.  This  simulacrum  of  authority  is 
pictured  upon  a  black  field,  and  set  off  with  nondescript  figures  in 
several  colors.  The  borders  have  no  stripe  arrangement,  but  consist 
of  actual  flowers,  grouped  about  the  centre-piece  in  a  manner  purely 
rococo. 

In  the  borders  of  some  of  the  original  Karabaghs  is  discovered 
the  reciprocal  trefoil,  as  it  is  called  by  European  experts,  who  declare 

ii8 


CAUCASIAN 

it  to  be  an  essential  mark  of  the  so-called  "  Polish  "  carpets  and  other 
famous  fabrics  believed  to  be  related  to  them.'  This  device  will  be 
noticed  later  in  modified  form  in  many  Mosul  and  Persian  as  well  as 
Turkoman  and  Beluchistan  fabrics. 

A  point  of  wide  difference  between  the  Daghestan  and  Kara- 
bagh  fabrics  is  the  fringe.  ,  In  the  latter-day  rugs,  instead  of  taking 
the  trouble  to  elaborate  the  fringe,  the  weaver  simply  withdraws  the 
rod  which  holds  the  warp,  and  the  looped  ends  are  left  uncut,  to  do 
duty  on  one  end  as  fringe  ;  on  the  other  the  warp  and  weft  are  woven 
into  a  web  just  wide  enough  to  be  turned  back  and  sewed.  The  warp 
is  white  or  brown  wool ;  the  weft  is  sometimes  colored  throughout 
The  sides  in  the  old  pieces  are  usually  finished  with  a  narrow  sel- 
vage ;  in  the  moderns  they  are  apt  to  be  overcast,  which  saves  time 
and  labor.  In  the  poorer  grades  of  moderns  heavy  yarn  is  used  to 
make  up  for  the  wretchedly  coarse  weaving,  and  dyes  and  workman- 
ship are  unmistakably  bad.  Yet  these  horrors  are  put  forward  for 
sale  as  "  antique  Daghestans." 

" Soumak"  or  ''Kashmiri' — It  is  the  shaggy  ends  of  the  col- 
ored nap-yarns,  left  loose  at  the  back  of  these  rugs,  which  has  given 
them  the  name  of  "  Kashmir."  The  dealers  foster  the  title  for  the 
monetary  value  of  the  suggestion  it  embodies,  and  in  some  quarters 
a  belief  prevails  that  the  rugs  are  really  the  product  of  that  vale 


'  "  The  intercourse  between  the  East  and  the  Venetian  and  other  Italian  States  in  the  Middle 
Ages  infused  an  Oriental  spirit  into  European  work  after  the  sixteenth  century.  About  that  time  a 
Pole  named  Mersherski  visited  Persia  and  India,  and  on  his  return  to  Warsaw  brought  with  him  native 
workmen,  with  whom  he  established  a  manufactory  of  Oriental  fabrics  in  that  city.  He  had  procured 
kincobs  and  other  stuffs  in  India  and  carpets  in  Persia,  which  he  used  as  models.  In  the  kincobs  gold 
and  silver  threads  were  woven  with  silk  and  cotton,  and  many  imitations  of  these  are  still  in  existence. 
But  whether  he  found  rugs  in  the  East  with  this  mixture  is  uncertain.  Of  the  carpets  made  by  him, 
having  gold  and  silver  interwoven  with  silk,  very  few  remain  to  our  day.  .  .  The  Polish  handicrafts- 
men seemed  at  first  to  have  only  copied  originals,  but  gradually  they  worked  details  into  their  designs 
which,  though  tinged  with  Eastern  ideas,  are  a  departure  from  the  old  models,  and  if  carefully  exam- 
ined these  productions  present  a  singular  mixture  qf  the  old  Persian  character  with  quite  a  new  ele- 
ment, .  .  .  It  is  as  if  the  Mongolians  who  invaded  Poland  in  1241  had  left  traces  of  their  art, 
which  remain  as  a  permanent  influence." — Robinson:  *'  Eastern  Carpets" 

"9  . 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

in  northern  India,  whose  shawls,  until  their  manufacture  was  debauched 
and  ultimately  destroyed  by  European  traders,  were  accounted  the 
most  perfect  textiles  in  the  world. 

The  true  name  of  the  so-called  "  Kashmir "  rugs  is  Soumaki, 
derived  from  the  old  Khanate  of  Soumaki,  lying  to  the  west  of  Shirvan. 
This  part  of  the  Caucasus  underwent  rigorous  j)olitical  changes  after 
the  cession  of  its  territory  to  Russia  in  1813,  and,  probably  for 
facility  of  administration,  Soumaki  as  a  distinct  province  was  elimi- 
nated. The  struggle  of  Russia  to  conquer  the  belligerent  tribes  of  the 
Caucasus  was  a  long  and  severe  one,  and  reduction  of  the  number  of 
provincial  rulers  was  the  most  effective  means  to  the  avoidance  of 
future  trouble.  It  is  best  to  continue  to  call  them  by  their  recognized 
name. 

The  patterns  of  the  Soumaks  are  mainly  the  geometrical  forms 
found  in  all  Daghestan  fabrics,  and  for  a  very  good  reason,  since  the 
district  where  they  are  made  is  in  the  range  of  the  mountains,  and  with 
only  the  ridge  at  its  back  separating  it  from  Daghestan. 

There  is  no  difficulty  in  discerning  the  likeness  between  the 
Shirvan  and  Soumak  rugs.  In  many  old  examples  the  designs  and 
colors  are  practically  identical;  the  difference,  as  has  been  stated, 
is  in  the  texture.  Both  resemble  the  Daghestan  in  device  and  color 
distribution,  though  the  treatment  is  different.  By  far  the  greater 
number  of  Soumaks  carry  medallions  of  octagon  shape  but  somewhat 
elongated,  transversely  of  the  rug. 

The  Soumaks  are  woven  with  a  flat  stitch,  which  with  the  loose 
yarns  at  the  back  of  the  rug,  constitutes  the  only  ground  for  the 
fictitious  title  of  "  Kashmir."  These  peculiarities  identify  them  beyond 
all  doubt,  for  no  other  rugs  resemble  them  in  this  respect. 

They  formerly  came  only  in  small  or  medium  sizes,  and  the  oldest 
specimens  are  fine,  carefully  woven,  fast  dyed,  and  beautiful  rugs. 
The  demand  for  large  pieces  has  been  met  with  fabrics  made  on  the 

120 


politit 


PLATE  XII.     Old  SIrab 

^•'^-^5-4  ,  igerent  tni 

Loaned  by  Mr.  Arthur  H.  Scribtifr  r  |? 

The  inspiration  of  the  makers  of  big  Herez  carpets,  and  even  of  the  fine 
woven  modern  Serapis,  woven  sometimes  on  the  looms  of  Tabriz  and  some- 
times on  those  of  Sultanabad,  is  found  in  such  rugs  as  this,  rare  pieces  enough 
since  the  eastern  villages  of  Azerbijan  became  a  carpet  factory,  feeding  the 
great  Tabriz  market  with  their  wares.  In  the  strong,  serrated  medallion  and 
in  the  peculiar  drawing  of  all  the  odd  floral  elements,  in  the  red  of  the  medal- 
lion and  the  lighter  blue  of  the  big  ribands  at  sides  and  corners,  is  declared  the 
local  genius  of  the  Herez  district,  but  this  rug,  fine  as  cloth  in  texture,  and  as 
pliable,  yet  strong,  was  made  decades  before  the  so-called  Herez,  or  Gorevan 
or  Serapi  "  whole  carpets  "  were  heard  of  in  the  West.  Its  centre  is  a  very 
sapphire  in  coloring  and  all  the  shades  of  camel's-hair  that  are  known  to  the 
loom-worker  lie  within  its  borders.  There  are  shadings  which  at  first  look  like 
soiled  streaks,  but  they  are  only  capricious  changes  in  the  color  of  the  wool. 


A.  M.  ENFIAJIAN  a  COi 


CAUCASIAN 

same  plan,  but  with  coarse,  grayish-brown  warp  in  place  of  the  white 
wool,  and  with  a  heavy,  common  quality  of  surface  yarn,  loosely 
woven  to  save  labor.  The  dyes  in  many  of  these  "bargain-counter" 
pieces  are  distressingly  bad,  and  the  evil  is  growing  as  time  goes  on. 
The  designs  are  also  deteriorating.  Some  consolation  is  to  be  had, 
however,  from  the  fact  that  even  now  something  like  ten  or  even 
fifteen  per  cent,  of  the  Soumaks  which  find  their  way  to  the  Ameri- 
can market  are  made  in  close  keeping  with  the  old  requirements. 

The  stitch  may  be  called  an  over-and-over  method.  Sometimes 
each  turn  of  the  surface  yarn  in  which  the  pattern  is  produced  takes 
in  two  threads  of  the  warp,  sometimes  three.  The  stitches  lie  slant- 
wise of  the  fabric,  and  each  row  reverses  the  direction  of  that  employed 
in  the  preceding  row,  so  that  the  grain  of  the  surface  resembles  an 
ordinary  herring-bone  weave.  The  weft  is  in  most  cases  carried  across 
and  back  after  every  two  rows  of  stitches.  In  the  old  carpets  it  was 
carried  one  way  after  a  single  row  was  finished,  and  back  after  the 
next  row,  making  a  fine,  closely  compacted  body.  In  such  there  were 
tenor  twelve  rows  of  stitches  to  the  inch  perpendicular,  not,  of  course, 
counting  the  weft  threads.  In  the  moderns,  eight  stitches  to  the  inch 
is  the  average  of  a  good  grade.  The  coarse  qualities  have  as  low  as 
six,  the  yarn  being  very  large  and  heavy,  and  the  weft  is  thrown  across 
one  way  after  every  three  rows. 

Shirvan. — So  far  as  numbers  go,  the  rugs  sold  as  Shirvans  are 
well  nigh  as  important  a  part  of  the  Caucasian  output  as  are  the 
Karabaghs.  In  texture  the  average  modern  Shirvan  is  rather  better 
than  the  Karabagh,  but  deterioration,  particularly  in  the  matter  of 
dyes,  is  apparent  in  many  of  the  grades. 

The  earlier  Shirvans  are  not  plentiful  in  the  markets  now.  They 
are  well  made,  and  have  all  the  old  richness  and  stability  of  color.  A 
feature  of  many  of  them  is  the  dissonance  between  border  and  central 
field,  in  color  and  design.     In  the  borders,  for  instance,  some  of  them 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

carry  one  broad  stripe,  sustained  by  narrow  guard-stripes,  and  dis- 
playing in  brilliant  red  upon  a  white  ground,  and  with  no  trace  of 
other  colors,  a  combination  design  of  the  arabesque  order,  reinforced 
with  conventionalized  flower  patterns  suggesting  the  Ladiks,  or  more 
remotely,  the  Ghiordes,  although  more  definite  than  either  of  these. 
All  the  border  area  presents  this  arrangement  of  red  and  white.  In 
the  body  of  the  rug  the  ground-color  is  apt  to  be  a  rich  and  lustrous 
blue,  almost  of  the  peacock  tinge,  upon  which  is  laid,  in  yellow,  with 
the  addition  of  some  red,  the  diagonal  lattice-work  common  in 
Daghestans ;  but  here  it  is  drawn  in  the  softer,  more  irregular  fashion 
of  the  Mosuls.  Others  of  these  antiques  have  the  selfsame  fine 
geometrical  designs  shown  in  the  Soumaks,  but  knotted,  of  course, 
instead  of  worked  in  the  pileless  stitch.  The  borders  sometimes 
depart  from  the  Caucasian  forms  and,  as  in  some  old  Karabaghs,  show 
separate  realistic  flower  devices  at  regular  intervals.  These  flowers 
are  frequently  in  the  profile  drawing,  declared  by  some  experts  to  be 
an  Asia  Minor  characteristic,  and  are  devoid  of  all  the  rectilinear 
Caucasian  character. 

The  modern  Shirvans  are  a  multitude,  and  serve  well  the  pur- 
poses of  ordinary  use.  Their  designs  have  not  undergone  the  degen- 
eration of  the  Karabaghs,  but  for  the  most  part  follow  quite  stead- 
fastly the  old  models.  The  better  qualities,  especially  those  which 
show  traces  of  Persian  influence,  are  often  marketed  for  the  Tartar 
type  of  Shiraz  rugs  made  in  the  Persian  provinces  of  Fars  and  Lar. 
To  forestall  this  substitution  is  sometimes  difficult.  The  materials  of 
the  foundation  offer  small  aid.  For  both  warp  and  weft  of  the  best 
Shiraz  fabrics  of  the  sort  mentioned  white  wool  is  used,  but  in  the 
coarse  moderns  black  wool  or  even  goat's-hair  may  be  found ;  in  the 
same  fashion  the  antique  Shirvans  have  wool  foundation  throughout, 
while  the  modern  warp  is  of  coarse  brown  or  white  wool,  or  a  mixed 
yarn  of  two  strands,  one  brown  and  the  other  white.     The  weft,  if  not 

122 


CAUCASIAN 

of  woo),  i»  xA  cotton,  and  four  threads  are  sometimes  put  in  after  each 
row  of  knots,  as  in  the  genuine  Kazaks  and  Samarkands.  The  most 
reliable  way  of  distinguishing  them  is  by  the  peculiar  checked  or  pat- 
terned particolored  selvage  at  the  ends,  referred  to  in  the  description 
of  the  Shiraz  rugs.  In  nine  out  of  ten  of  the  Shiraz  fabrics  it  will  be 
found  in  some  form,  in  the  Shirvans  seldom  if  ever.  The  ends  of 
Shirvans  have  the  cloth  web  woven  of  the  warp  and  weft  threads, 
extending  an  inch  or  more  beyond  the  pile,  in  addition  to  which 
many  have  a  fringe  made  by  knotting  the  gathered  strands  of  the 
warp  after  the  manner  of  ordinary  machine-made  fringe.  In  many 
moderns  the  warp  ends  are  simply  left  loose  for  a  finishing,  to  save 
time.  In  some  of  them  the  sides,  instead  of  being  overcast  or  sel- 
vaged,  have  the  body  finish. 

Very  coarse  Karabagh  and  Shirvan  designs  of  all  sorts,  shipped 
from  the  neighborhood  of  Shemakha,  ancient  capital  of  the  Khanate  of 
Shirvan,  have  come  to  be  known  among  Caucasian  traders  as  Shema- 
kinski — and  the  term  is  a  synonym  for  bad  weaving,  as  Kaba-Karaman 
is  in  Anatolia. 

Kazak. — There  !s  a  tribe  of  nomad  Kazaks  inhabiting  the  hills 
about  Nova  Bayezid  and  Lake  Goktcha  in  Erivan.  They  are  an  old 
offshoot  of  the  great  hordes  whose  home  is  in  the  Kirghiz  steppes  and 
whose  kinsmen  are  scattered  over  the  southern  districts  of  Russia 
away  to  the  banks  of  the  Don.  "  Kazak  "  means  virtually  a  rough- 
rider.  It  describes  the  whole  race  of  these  restless,  roaming,  trouble- 
some people,  who,  in  a  sense,  are  born,  live,  and  die  in  the  saddle.  It 
is  the  original  of  the  name  Cossack,  which  is  familiar  to  all  the  world. 

The  Kazaks  of  the  Kirghiz  steppes  weave  rugs,  but,  it  is  con- 
ceded, chiefly  for  home  use.  Nearly  all  the  Kazak  fabrics  which  come  to 
market  are  made — or  were  originally  made — in  the  district  of  Transcau- 
casia just  mentioned.  This  Kazak  colony,  which  invaded  the  neighbor- 
hood while  yet  Transcaucasia  was  reckoned  in  the  Persian  domain,  is 
Sunni  Mohammedan  in  faith.     For  a  long  time  its  rugs  were  made 

123 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

after  the  models  of  the  North,  but  of  late  have  begun  to  show  more 
likeness  to  the  Karabagh  type  made  throughout  the  surrounding 
country.  This  is  chiefly  the  work,  not  of  the  Kazaks,  but  of  Armeni- 
ans, who  inhabit  the  villages  in  the  district,  and  who,  having  learned 
the  weaving  trade  from  the  shepherds,  proceeded  to  develop  a  type 
for  themselves,  better  suited,  they  thought,  to  the  requirements  of 
the  market.  It  leaned  toward  the  Karabaghs.  From  Nova  Bayezid, 
where  most  of  the  rugs  are  exchanged  for  other  commodities,  the 
Armenian  storekeepers  make  large  shipments  from  time  to  time. 
About  seventy-five  per  cent,  of  these  are  of  the  old-fashioned  Kazak 
order.  The  remainder  are  degenerate  Kazaks  or  out  and  out  Karabaghs. 

Antique  Kazak  fabrics  of  the  best  sort  are  few  now.  Occa- 
sionally an  old,  patched,  threadbare  specimen  comes  to  light  to  rebuke 
the  latter-day  products  which  bear  the  name.  Bad  dyes  have  made 
a  mockery  of  many  of  the  moderns.  Great  stains  of  some  unstable 
color,  usually  magenta,  soaked  over  perhaps  one-third  of  the  fabric, 
tell  the  sad  story  of  their  deterioration.  Many  a  dealer  has  had  these 
loose-dyed  rugs  left  upon  his  hands. 

The  older  ones  have  a  remarkable  softness.  They  are  thick  and 
heavy ;  the  tufts  or  knots  of  the  pile  are  longer  than  those  of  almost 
any  old  Oriental  rug.  The  peculiar  feature  is  that  four  threads  of  1/ 
the  weft  are  thrown  across  after  every  row  of  knots,  as  in  the  Samar- 
kands.  In  this  way  the  tufts  forming  the  pile  are  made  to  overlap 
each  other  smoothly  instead  of  standing  nearly  upright,  as  do  those 
of  most  other  fabrics.  The  only  saving  accomplished  by  thus  bur- 
dening the  rug  with  weft-threads  is  that  of  time. 

The  original  designs  are  strong  and  characteristic  to  a  degree — 
bjg»  geometrical  figures,  upon  fields  of  magnificent  red  or  green,  which 
half  a  century  of  wear  and  exposure  will  scarcely  suffice  to  dim. 
Throughout  the  field  are  distributed  detached  figures — crosses,  parti- 
colored diamonds,  squares  and  circles  and  disproportioned  representa- 
tions of  birds,  trees,  animals  and  human  beings,  all  in  the  most  archaic 

124 


CAUCASIAN 

drawing  and  most  primitive  color.  In  the  borders  are  many  varia- 
tions of  the  latch-hook  feature,  and  a  reciprocal  saw-tooth  pattern 
distinctive  of  some  Caucasian  fabrics.  This  same  border  often  ap- 
pears in  the  Persian  Sarabands.  Persian  weavers  call  it  the  sechan- 
disih — •*  teeth  of  the  rat." 

The  Kazaks  are  usually  finished  with  a  stout  selvage  at  the  sides, 
and  at  the  ends  with  a  shaggy  fringe,  which  may  be  omitted  from 
one  end  to  allow  the  web  formed  from  warp  and  weft  to  be  turned 
back  and  hemmed.  The  most  common  sizes  are  from  three  to  six 
feet  wide  by  five  to  eight  feet  long. 

The  whole  effect,  whether  the  rug  be  of  great  or  small  dimen- 
sions, is  stoutness.  Many  of  the  older  ones  are  almost  square,  one 
measurement  exceeding  the  other  sometimes  by  only  three  or  four 
inches.  Occasionally  an  example  is  found  with  one  end  finished  in  a 
knotted  rope's-end  fringe  resembling  that  mentioned  as  belonging  to 
the  coarser  rugs  of  the  Mosul  province  in  Turkey. 

In  the  later  products  there  is  a  tendency  to  imitate  some  of  the 
more  ornamental  patterns  of  the  Kabistans.  The  stripe  arrangement 
of  the  field,  and  lumbering  versions  of  the  pear  pattern  are  seen,  but 
in  nearly  all  cases  there  is  preserved  one  figure  thoroughly  typical  of 
the  old  Kazaks,  a  conventional  form  which  will  be  recognized  at  once 
from  its  likeness  to  the  tarantula,  of  which  it  is  probably  an  actual 
representation,  but  having  become  a  standard  element  in  the  decora- 
tion of  this  region,  it  has  taken  on  complications  and  formal  ornamen- 
tation which  in  a  measure  obscure  the  resemblance.  ^     In  some  of  the 


•"  On  voit  sous  la  lettre  '  B '  un  tapis  Boukhare,  qui  se  distingue  par  I'eclat  des  couleurs  et  par 
an  remarquable  melange  de  dessins  rappelant  des  scorpions,  des  tarentules,  les  constants  compagnons 
de  voyage  des  traditions  populaires.  Pasde  conte  ou  Ton  ne  voie  jouer  un  rdle  i  la  tarentule  Kara- 
coute,  qui  est  consider^  comme  particuliirement  venimeuse." — N.  Simakoff :  "  L'Art  de  I'Asit 
Centrale." 

"  Boukhare"  is  used  by  Simakoff  to  designate  the  whole  of  Turkestan.  The  carpets  which  he 
here  calls  "tapis  Boukhare"  were  the  Yomuds.  The  manner  in  which  they  come  to  have  many  of 
the  border  patterns  common  to  the  Caucasians  is  made  clear  in  the  section  on  Vomad,  under  the 
general  class  of  Turkoman  fabrics. 

M5 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

better  modern  pieces  this  idea  has  been  developed  in  the  most  artistic 
manner,  two  of  these  figures  appearing  in  great  size  in  the  central  field, 
upon  a  ground  of  splendid  red.  The  borders  have  the  heavy  patterns 
typical  of  Kazaks. 

MOSUL  FABRICS 

The  diversity  resultant  upon  mixed  population  is  nowhere  so 
manifest  as  in  the  rugs  collected  in  the  country  about  Mosul,  the  old 
city  in  the  heart  of  Mesopotamia.  This  territory  is  traversed  by  the 
river  Tigris.  Since  the  beginning  of  history  the  tide  of  conquest  has 
ebbed  and  flowed  mightily  here  where  now  half  ruined  walls  inclose  a 
straggling  and  moribund  town,  and  serve  in  seasons  of  flood  to  avert 
the  encroachments  of  the  river.  A  little  way  outside  the  gates  of 
Mosul  are  the  ruins  of  Nineveh,  Senn  and  Nimrud. 

Here  Persians  followed  Scythians  as  conquerors,  and  were  them- 
selves succeeded  in  turn  by  Macedonians,  Tartars,  Arabs  and  Turko- 
mans. Under  every  sway  Mosul  was  a  capital.  That  it  has  been  a 
centre  of  manufacture  finds  proof  in  the  one  word  muslin,  which  had 
its  derivation  here.  In  the  population  of  the  district  are  represented 
far  more  than  half  of  all  the  races  which  go  to  make  up  the  Ottoman 
Empire  of  to-day.  In  the  city  and  its  adjacent  villages  are  gathered 
many  distinct  nationalities,  all  living  in  perpetual  dread  of  the  wild 
Kurdish  and  Bedouin  neighbors  who  infest  the  unguarded  highways 
or  roam  over  the  surrounding  mountains,  preying  upon  commerce  and 
travel,  and  disclaiming  both  subjection  to  Osmanli  and  faith  in  Islam. 
The  Mosul  fabrics  include  also  rugs  made  in  the  mountains  of  old 
Armenia  and  Erivan,  and  others  from  the  south  toward  Syria. 

The  multitude  of  designs  common  to  this  strangely  peopled  re- 
gion presents  not  only  all  the  characteristic  forms  of  the  Caucasian 
class,  but  well  nigh  every  device  which  Oriental  ornamentation 
knows,  though  most  of  them  are  wrought  roughly.     Every  corner  of 

X26 


CAUCASIAN 

the  East,  even  as  far  as  China,  has  contributed  some  trick  of  texture 
or  design  to  the  varied  fabrics  of  Mosul,  yet  most  of  them  show 
affinity  with  the  Caucasian  lot.  The  fact  that  so  many  of  the  Mosul 
tribes  are  out  of  the  reach  of  trade  influences  speaks  well  for  the  hon- 
esty of  their  product,  and  examination,  in  the  main,  bears  out  the  in- 
ference. Wool,  dyes  and  workmanship  are  well  up  to  the  average, 
considering  always  the  weavers'  lights,  and  the  designs,  diverse  as 
they  are,  still  preserve  a  thoroughly  Eastern  character.  Nearly  all 
the  rugs  included  in  the  Mosul  shipments  are,  however,  more  or  less 
coarse,  heavy,  and  suggestive  in  their  patterns  and  construction  of 
the  rude  life  which  prevails  in  the  entire  region. 

Mosul  Proper. — The  two  characteristics  which,  taken  in  conjunc- 
tion, provide  the  first  step  toward  identification  of  these  fabrics  are : 
First,  the  soft,  flocky  nature  of  the  pile ;  second,  a  marked  tendency 
to  the  use  of  yellow  and  warm,  yellowish  or  brownish  reds  in  th^ 
coloring.  A  great  deal  of  camel's-hair  and  goat's-hairyf//^  is  used  in 
the  pile.  The  camel's-hair  in  natural  color  contributes  a  yellow  tone, 
but  aside  from  that,  saffron  seems  to  have  taken  a  firm  hold  upon  the 
favor  of  the  dyers  in  Mosul.  In  the  antiques,  which  have  a  glossy 
finish,  this  prevalence  of  yellow  gives  an  impression,  when  the  rugs  are 
seen  from  a  distance,  that  they  have  undergone  some  process  of 
gilding.  Blue  and  green  are  chiefly  used  in  small  areas,  to  brighten 
the  figures  in  the  border  stripes ;  if  in  large  areas,  they  are  almost 
invariably  in  dark  shades.  In  all  the  multiplicity  of  designs,  the 
Caucasian  influence  is  plainly  visible.  Some  feature  of  it  can  be 
found  in  almost  every  rug,  although  the  patterns  are  loosely  wrought 
and,  owing  in  a  measure  to  the  length  of  pile,  fine  definition  is  impos- 
sible. For  example,  the  parallel  bars — horizontal  or  diagonal — inclos- 
ing rows  of  small  figures,  found  in  the  body  of  the  Kabistans  and 
Tzitzis,  are  frequent  in  the  Mosuls,  but  the  small  patterns  are  usually 
queer  reciprocal  key  devices,  or  geometrical   tree  forms,  although 

127 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

sometimes  the  pear  is  found.  The  diagonal  lattice-work  of  the 
Daghestan  group  has  its  place  in  the  Mosuls,  too.  Thanks  to 
Persian  influence,  the  Mosul  weavers  are  prone  to  do  with  color  shad- 
ing what  those  of  Daghestan  do  with  the  oft-repeated  latch-hook,  in 
softening  the  contrast  between  one  body  of  color  and  another.  The 
latch-hook  in  great  measure  disappears  in  the  Mosuls,  although  it  is 
found  in  some  rugs  of  the  Turkish  class  farther  to  the  westward, 
made  by  nomads  who  have  trod  this  path  in  their  migrations.  The 
barber-pole  stripe,  first  noticed  in  the  Kabistans,  is  very  common 
here,  and  the  large  geometrical  figures  used  as  the  central  design  of 
so  many  Daghestans  and  Kabistans  are  often  found  performing  the 
same  function  in  Mosuls.  The  Persian  and  Kurdish  influences  are 
also  apparent.  The  pear  device  is  especially  frequent,  but  in  hard 
forms,  so  rectilinear  in  some  instances  that  at  first  glance  it  is  scarcely 
recognized.  It  is  a  hexagon,  with  a  particolored  square  in  the 
centre,  and  the  elongation  merely  a  projecting  angular  hook  in  yellow 
or  red.  The  same  form  is  found  in  the  decorative  art  of  India.  The 
reciprocal  trefoil  border  stripe,  in  dark  red  and  blue  as  a  rule,  runs 
through  a  great  number  of  Mosuls.  There  is  found,  too,  the  star 
emblem  seen  the  world  over  in  the  decoration  of  synagogues,  pos- 
sibly an  adaptation  of  the  seal  of  Solomon  or  a  copy  of  the  Persian 
symbol,  but  held  by  some  writers  to  have  been  originally  representa- 
tive of  divinity. 

The  borders  are  most  often  three  in  number,  and  separated  by 
heavy  lines  of  very  dark  brown  or  blue.  Geometrical  or  crude  floral 
designs  are  used,  but  almost  invariably  one  at  least  of  the  border 
stripes  carries  some  well-known  Caucasian  pattern.  Very  often  a 
three-  or  four-inch  outside  band  of  camel's-hair  or  some  other  yarn  in 
the  natural  brown  color  runs  around  all  four  sides  of  the  rug,  inclos- 
ing the  whole  design  as  in  a  frame,  and  emphasizing  the  yellow  tone 
which,  as  was  said  in  the  beginning,  is  a  Mosul  mark.     The  sides  of  the 

128 


ViB9\ 


\>}ii3q 


.o  the  wes 


Plate  XIII.  Kulah  Prayer  Rug 

6.0  X  4.0 

loaned  by  Dr.  O.  Ernest  Hill 

While  of  the  coarser  quality  of  old  style  Kulahs,  this  rug  contains  the 
features  which  seem  to  have  been  essentially  of  Kulah  origin,  though  they  ap- 
pear oftentimes  in  the  Ghiordes  and  Ladik  prayer  rugs.  The  multiplication  of 
peculiarly  marked  small  stripes  to  cover  the  border  tract  and  the  serrated 
drawing  of  the  prayer  arch  are  chief  among  the  Kulah  marks.  Wear  and  re- 
peated washing  have  dimmed  the  areas  of  golden  brown  which  in  so  many  old 
rugs  of  this  variety  is  the  predominant  color. 


have  been  originally  reiv 


inclos- 
"he  sid 


Av       t>l^'        *" 


,.ri/^lAN&COl 


CAUCASIAN 

rug  are  overcast  and  the  ends  finished  with  a  narrow,  thick  selvage 
if  the  warp  be  cotton,  with  a  fringe  if  it  be  wool. 

Turkman  or  Genghis. — In  the  sandhills  along  the  border  lines 
between  Mosul  province  and  Persia,  roam  bands  of  Turkomans. 
They  are  otherwise  known  to  the  Ottoman  population  as  the 
"  Genghis  people,"  after  Genghis  Khan,  in  whose  warlike  train  their 
forbears  came  westward  from  Central  Asia.  They  dwell  in  tents 
and  change  their  abode  with  the  seasons.  They  are  part  of  the 
mixed  Turkish  peoples  who  are  scattered  all  through  the  country 
west  of  the  Oxus.  The  title  of  Turkman  was  given  by  the  Persians 
in  whose  service  they  fought  during  the  interminable  wars  of  the 
Middle  Ages.  It  implies  "a  resemblance  to  Turks,"  these  tribes  hav- 
ing, from  their  long  residence  in  the  Iranian  country,  lost  many  of 
their  race  characteristics,  both  of  temperament  and  physical  appear- 
ance. They  retain,  however,  their  bold,  warlike  disposition  and  fond- 
ness for  outdoor  life. 

In  the  rugs  which  they  send  to  the  annual  fair  near  Mosul  and 
to  the  bazaars  in  Tiflis,  their  race  traits  and  their  manner  of  living 
are  plainly  to  be  read.  The  fabrics  are  exceedingly  heavy,  which 
is  natural  since  they  are  made  to  be  spread  upon  the  ground  out  of 
doors.  The  warp  is  a  three-strand  thread  of  goat's-hair  or  brown 
wool,  and  the  pile  about  twice  as  long  as  that  of  the  Shirvans.  There 
are  seldom  fewer  than  forty  knots  to  the  square  inch,  and  they  are 
woven  from  fine  wool  which  the  women  of  the  tribes  spin. 

The  designs  consist  principally  of  the  geometrical  devices  found 
in  the  Caucasian  fabrics,  but  the  nomad  elements  of  crudity  and  sim- 
plicity and  a  prevalence  of  small,  separate  figures  are  discernible. 
The  Persian  influence  sometimes  crops  out  in  the  use  of  the  vine 
with  flowers  attached.  The  Turkman,  whose  nomad  impatience  and 
poverty  of  artistic  conception  make  it  impossible  for  him  to  reproduce 
the  complex  designs  of  Persian  carpets,  has  by  crude  repetition  of  the 

129 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

easier  border  elements  made  a  central  design  of  his  own.  He  often 
has  a  series  of  these  border  patterns  running  side  by  side  through  the 
whole  length  of  the  body  of  the  rug.  The  undulation,  which  in 
most  Persian  designs  is  gracefully  curved,  he  treats  in  the  less  diffi- 
cult rectilinear  fashion,  and  his  versions  of  the  palmettes  and  lotus 
buds  which  the  vine  carries  at  its  curved  intervals  are  severe  in  draw- 
ing and  immensely  unlike  what  they  are  meant  for.  The  whole  effect 
is  ambitious,  and  pleasing,  too,  perhaps  because  it  is  so  badly  done. 
He  repeats  the  same  idea  in  the  border,  using  for  adornment  of  the 
vine,  for  example,  a  white  cross,  evidently  of  floral  derivation,  upon  a 
red  octagon,  instead  of  the  more  difficult  rosette  which  belongs  to  the 
pattern  in  its  purity.  The  pear  is  freely  employed,  both  in  the  body, 
where  it  is  used  in  alternating  rows  of  red  and  blue,  and  in  the  border 
stripe,  where  it  relieves  other  figures.  Nomad  authorship  is  shown 
by  the  detached  bird  and  animal  figures  in  the  body  of  the  rugs  and 
occasionally  in  the  border.  The  sides  are  selvaged  and  the  ends  fin- 
ished with  a  small  fringe.  In  this  respect  the  Turkman  follows  the 
urbane  rather  than  the  nomad  custom. 

In  Constantinople,  as  in  the  American  market,  miscellaneous 
bales  of  rugs,  all  measuring  between  three  and  five  feet  in  width,  and 
six  and  eight  feet  in  length,  are  jobbed  under  the  name  of  Genghis, 
or,  as  the  bills  of  lading  have  it,  "  Guendje."  They  are  made  up  of 
the  odds  and  ends  of  the  Shirvans,  Karabaghs,  Mosuls  and  other  sec- 
ondary fabrics  of  the  Caucasian  class,  and  usually  come  from  Eliz- 
abetpol,  the  old  Armeno-Persian  name  of  which  was  Gandja.  Of 
late  a  great  manufacture  of  this  sort  of  stuff  has  been  organized  by 
Armenian  middlemen  in  the  Baghdad  district,  the  output  of  which 
is  being  marketed  in  this  country.  In  addition  to  the  rugs  named 
some  Persians,  Hamadans  and  the  like,  are  taken  for  patterns,  and 
several  low-grade  mats  woven  on  each  warp. 

Some  Varieties  of  Kurdish  Rugs. — More  striking  contrast  could 

Z30 


CAUCASIAN 

scarcely  be  imagined  than  that  between  the  rough,  common,  mis- 
shapen rugs  made  by  the  Kurds  in  the  north  of  Mosul  and  about 
Lake  Van,  and  the  masterly  ones  turned  out  by  their  kinsmen  in  the 
upland  towns  of  Western  Persia.  These  "  Mosul  Kurdish  "  rugs  are 
of  the  same  general  character  as  the  Genghis  just  described.  In 
ornament  the  Genghis  are  accounted  somewhat  better,  but  the 
Kurdish  fabrics  are  more  closely  woven,  heavier,  and  more  durable. 
They  have,  to  be  sure,  fewer  stitches  to  the  inch,  but  the  pile  yarn — 
and  also,  indeed,  the  warp  and  weft — are  much  heavier.  The  rugs 
are  rough  and  to  the  last  degree  savage  in  appearance.  In  the  con- 
glomeration of  colors  a  certain  rude  strength  is  manifest,  but 
although  the  general  effect  is  warm  and  lustrous  the  absence  of  any- 
thing like  decorative  refinement  is  complete.  In  many  of  them  a 
great  deal  of  dark  brown  wool  in  its  natural  state  determines  the 
color  tones.  Brown  sheep's-wool  or  coarse  goat's-hair  thread  is  taken 
for  the  foundation.  The  sides  are  overcast  or  selvaged  at  the 
caprice  or  convenience  of  the  weaver.  The  ends  have  usually  the 
nomadic  web  extension,  and  the  braids  with  which  they  are  finished 
complete  their  barbaric  extravagance.  The  ends  of  the  warp  are 
plaited  into  tight,  flat  strands,  like  the  Mexican  lariat,  about  two 
inches  apart  and  knotted  at  the  ends.  In  some  examples  several  of 
these  are  worked  together,  and  form  small,  compact,  triangular  plaited 
mats,  from  the  outer  point  of  which  the  braids  depend.  These  rugs 
are  utterly  lacking  in  symmetry,  and  sometimes  are  so  crooked  that 
they  have  to  be  cut  and  sewn  together  again  to  bring  them  into  any- 
thing like  regular  shape. 

Similar  to  these  Mosul  Kurd  fabrics  in  texture  and  quality  are 
those  sometimes  sold  under  the  name  of  Kozan,  an  Asia  Minor  vilayet 
to  the  west  of  Mosul.  They  are  finished  with  selvage  on  the  sides 
and  a  long  fringe  at  the  ends  instead  of  the  plaits  referred  to  above. 


131 


X 

TURKISH 

THE  substitute  term  for  Turkish  in  the  vocabulary  of  the  rug- 
seller  is  Smyrna,  or  was  so  until  the  American  manufactures 
began  to  bear  that  name.  But  in  any  event  it  is  in  essence 
a  misnomer,  since  in  Smyrna  no  rugs  are  made  for  market,  nor  have 
been,  within  the  memory  of  man.  Smyrna  is  essentially  a  mercantile 
capital.  Next  to  Constantinople,  it  is  the  chief  point  of  export  for 
Oriental  rugs  and  the  products  of  all  districts  have  thus  come  to  bear 
its  name  in  vulgar  usage,  although  no  fabrics  are  sold  in  the  whole- 
sale market  in  Smyrna  save  those  made  in  Asia  Minor. 

The  Turkish  class,  though  commercially  very  large,  is  small  in 
the  number  of  its  varieties.  A  line  drawn  from  Trebizond,  on  the 
Black  Sea,  southwesterly  to  the  head  of  the  Gulf  of  Iskanderum,  in 
the  Mediterranean,  would  cut  off  the  Anatolian  peninsula  from  the 
Asiatic  mainland.  It  would  have  to  the  west  of  it  all  the  territory 
whose  rugs  may  properly  be  called  Turkish.  Those  which  alone 
have  shadow  of  right  to  the  name  Smyrna  are  a  component  group  of 
the  Turkish  class.  They  are  made  chiefly  in  the  towns  of  the  two 
western  provinces,  Aidin  and  Broussa,  which  are  directly  accessible 
from  Smyrna  by  rail,  or  in  their  remoter  quarters  by  caravan,  and 
which  find  in  that  city  their  most  convenient  and,  in  fact,  inevitable 

132 


TURKISH 

point  of  sale  and  shipment.  This  proximity  to  a  commercial  centre 
and  close  communication  through  it  with  the  Western  world  has  given 
to  the  rug  industry  of  these  provinces  a  double  character  not  found 
in  any  other  section  of  the  Orient ;  has  in  fact  in  some  degree  robbed 
it  of  its  distinctively  Eastern  quality,  so  that  although  many  of  the 
old-time  Turkish  rugs  were  of  remarkable  workmanship,  fully  ninety 
per  cent,  of  the  fabrics  made  there  to-day  are  representative  of 
nothing  save  the  passion  of  the  West  for  this  form  of  floor  covering, 
the  aptitude  of  Western  designers  at  devising  new  combinations  of 
Oriental  figures  and  of  color,  and  the  amazing,  possibly  unsuspected 
ability  of  the  Turkish  weavers  to  do  under  pressure  a  great  amount 
of  work  in  a  short  time. 

The  peninsula,  so  far  as  its  rugs  are  concerned,  is  merely  a  work- 
shop, and  Smyrna  is  its  counting  room.'  The  great  burden  of  the 
output  in  the  Western  district  is,  as  I  have  said,  made  upon  orders 
from  outside  markets.  Some  of  these  are  general ;  some  are  specific  ; 
but  altogether  they  have  sufificed  to  wean  the  workman  from  old 
materials  and  old  methods.  He  aims  now  at  volume  rather  than 
excellence.  Large  business  sagacity,  to  be  sure,  has  been  shown  in 
the  selection  of  this  particular  region  for  the  enterprise.  It  presents 
facilities  for  shipment,  and  it  not  only  produces  readily  and  plentifully 
all  the  materials  used  in  the  construction  of  rugs,  but  numbers  among 
its  population  a  representation  from  almost  every  Eastern  race. 
There  is  no  form  of  weaving  which  may  be  needed  in  filling  a  busi- 

'  The  system  of  dealing  in  the  Smyrna  and  Constantinople  markets  is  infinitely  complex,  made 
so,  doubtless,  by  the  Turkish  dealers  as  a  means  for  gaining  an  advantage  in  intricate  transaction  with 
Western  buyers.  Out  of  the  accumulation  of  facts  bearing  upon  this  matter  these  will  be  of  general 
interest:  In  wholesale  dealings  in  Smyrna  the  big  carpets  made  throughout  Asia  Minor  are  sold  by  the 
square  "pick" — five  square  feet — while  the  Bergamo,  Meles,  and  other  small  rugs  are  disposed  of 
by  the  piece.  Payment  is  made  in  the  medjit — twenty  Turkish  piastres.  In  Constantinople  the  mod- 
em Persians,  Sultanabad,  Tabriz,  Herez,  Feraghan,  and  the  like,  are  sold  at  so  many  francs  per 
square  metre,  and  the  antiques  at  so  many  Turkish  pounds  apiece.  The  Caucasian  and  Tartarian, 
excepting  perhaps  some  of  the  large  Bokharas  and  Afghanistan  nomad  rugs  recently  sent  to  nurket* 
are  disposed  of  at  so  many  francs  apiece  and  never  by  the  square  foot. 

133 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

ness  order,  but  in  this  hodgepodge  of  peoples  men  and  women  con- 
versant with  it  can  be  found,  and  the  conditions  of  the  country  make 
it  certain  that  their  work  may  be  had  at  a  price  which  warrants  a 
goodly  margin  of  profit  to  every  person  through  whose  hands  the 
fabric  may  pass  before  it  reaches  the  user.  In  Afion-Karahissar,  for 
example,  Armenian  women  weave  for  from  four  to  seven  cents  a  day. 

The  singular  conditions  prevalent  here  present  a  difficult  dilemma 
to  the  writer.  Each  weaving  town  has  in  effect  two  classes  of  fabrics. 
To  prosecute  faithfully  the  purpose  of  this  book  description  should 
be  given,  to  the  end  of  identification,  of  the  typical  antique  rugs  for 
which  some  of  the  districts  have  been  renowned.  They  have  a  dis- 
tinctive character  which  the  new  products  have  not.*  The  modern 
fabrics  made  in  certain  towns  of  Asia  Minor  bear  no  relation  to  the 
antiques  made  in  the  same  places,  so  far  as  likeness  is  concerned. 
These  towns  have  in  the  modern  fabrics  almost  no  distinctive  types 
at  all.  They  produce  loose,  heavy  rugs  of  conglomerate  design, 
which  recall  nothing  so  much  as  young  Falconbridge,  who  "  bought 
his  doublet  in  Italy,  his  round-hose  in  France,  his  bonnet  in  Germany, 
and  his  behavior  everywhere." 

Less,  then,  to  emphasize  this  difference  than  to  avoid  inadequacy, 
it  is  necessary  to  make  clear  something  of  the  character  of  each  of 
the  older  carpets,  specimens  of  which  are  occasionally  encountered, 
before  speaking  of  the  coarser  latter-day  fabrics  which  are  rushed  out 
from  the  looms  of  the  same  towns  to  meet  the  demands  of  trade,  and 
which,  no  matter  how  much  their  existence  may  discomfort  the  ama- 
teur, are  proving  themselves  of  vast  worth  and  service  to  the  house- 

•  All  authorities  upon  ornament  set  forth  that  there  is  no  original  and  distinctive  Turkish  system 
of  ornamentation:  that  the  custom  of  the  Turks,  as  conquerors,  was  to  command  the  services  of  ar- 
tisans ;  that  the  Turkish  type,  so  far  as  it  may  be  said  to  exist,  is  a  combination  of  Persian  and 
Arabic.  Leroy  Beaulieu  remarks  that  the  Turks  show  in  everything  an  imitation  of  the  Persian 
genius,  and  it  is  matter  of  history  that  the  Osmanli  Turks,  after  each  successful  incursion  apon  Persian 
territory,  sent  captives  of  the  artisan  class  to  Constantinople  to  weave,  carve  and  carry  on  other  art 
industries  for  the  beautificatioa  of  Turkish  palaces. 

X34 


TURKISH 

holder  who  has  a  floor  to  cover  and  a  careless,  hard-heeled  company 
to  tread  it. 

KONIEH  FABRICS 

Konieh  province  and  the  districts  which  surround  it  exemplify 
perfectly  the  diversity  in  topography,  climate  and  population  which 
mark  the  whole  Anatolian  peninsula.  The  plateaus  of  this  section 
afford  all  the  conditions  required  for  wool  growing ;  the  valleys  which 
traverse  it  are  fertile  in  the  production  of  dye  materials. 

The  general  methods  of  construction  are  similar  throughout  the 
entire  group,  but  the  difference  between  the  varieties,  in  quality  and 
appearance,  is  clear.  Those  which  come  from  the  north,  about  Kir- 
Shehr  and  the  vicinity  of  the  salt  lake  Tcholli,  and  as  far  as  ancient 
Caesarea,*  are  of  sterling  texture  and  good  color  and  design,  while  the 
products  of  the  south,  of  Nigdeh  and  Karaman,  among  the  foothills 
of  the  Taurus  mountains,  are  rough,  and  made  in  evident  ignorance 
of  any  known  decorative  system.  The  designs  of  these  are  crude, 
and  the  colors,  while  largely  vegetable,  and  striking  in  the  mass, 
are  arranged  in  utter  disregard  of  theoretical  harmony. 

Konieh  Proper. — Konieh — ancient  Iconium — the  name  has  its 
origin  in  the  Greek  word  hiovq  (picture),  on  account  of  the  legend 
of  the  locality — has  never  until  very  lately  ranked  with  other  towns 
of  Asia  Minor  as  a  rug-producing  place.  Even  under  the  old  dis- 
pensation, its  weavings  had  not  the  wide  fame  and  favor  accorded 
to  those  of  Ghiordes,  Kulah,  Bergamo,  or  Ladik.  They  were 
made  more  strictly  for  local  use  than  perhaps  any  of  these.  For  this 
reason,  probably,  the  antique  specimens  from  the  Konieh  looms  are 
more  rarely  met  with  nowadays.  They  are,  nevertheless,  of  eminent 
merit,  and  though  pursuing  a  different  theory  of  color  from  the  rugs 
of  "Smyrna"  towns,  exhibit  skill  in  the  dyeing  and  a  wholesome 
though  sometimes  not  over-delicate  taste  in  the  adjustment  of  color. 

>  Kaisarieb. 

135 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

Most  of  the  antique  Koniehs  which  have  found  their  way 
over-seas  are  sedjadeh,  odjaklik^  and  yesteklik — not,  as  is  the  case 
with  those  of  the  other  cities  named,  for  the  greater  part  prayer 
rugs.  The  antique  odjaklik^  or  hearth  rug,  of  Konieh  abounds  in 
warm  rich  color.  It  is  worthy  of  notice,  too,  that  all  the  hues  have 
a  peculiar  luminous  quality  when  exposed  to  a  slanting  light  such  as 
falls  upon  them  from  the  fire-place,  a  glow  that  they  do  not  reveal 
when  looked  at  point  blank,  in  the  light  of  common  day.  They  are 
constructed  with  this  effect  in  view.  One  excellent  example  had  at 
the  time  of  writing  lain  for  several  months  in  a  pile  of  small  antiques 
*of  different  varieties,  in  a  large  New  York  rug  establishment.  Piece 
after  piece  had  been  sold  from  the  pile,  and  it  had  frequently  been 
replenished  from  new  consignments,  but  the  old  Konieh,  in  every 
way  one  of  the  rarest  and  most  desirable  possessions  of  the  lot,  had 
always  been  relegated,  after  examination,  to  its  old  place  and  the  more 
showy  fabrics  chosen.  It  was  not,  as  a  fact,  of  an  appearance  to  catch 
at  first  glance  the  fancy  of  the  average  purchaser,  yet  at  the  time  the 
author  of  this  book  saw  it  there  was  the  best  of  reasons  for  believing 
that  it  was  the  only  rug  of  its  sort  to  be  seen  for  sale  in  New  York. 

The  feature  of  the  odjaklik  design,  found  in  the  majority  of  rugs 
made  for  the  hearth,  is  that  it  has  in  some  fashion  or  other  the  conical 
or  pointed  formation  at  both  ends  of  the  central  field.  It  is  as  if  the 
field  were  made  up  of  two  prayer  rugs,  joined  base  to  base.  In  the 
piece  just  referred  to  an  elongated  hexagon  was  set  in  the  central 
oblong,  with  its  acute  angles  pointing  toward  the  ends.  The  ground- 
color of  the  field  was  a  singular,  lustrous  quality  of  sky  blue.  Just 
inside  the  border  stripes  and  running  all  about  the  edges  of  the  field, 
was  a  row  of  pinks,  drawn  in  profile  and  arranged  with  perfect 
regularity.  In  each  of  the  corner  spaces  left  by  the  hexagon  was  a 
floral  figure  of  some  magnitude,  supported  by  an  elongated  device, 
apparently  of  animal  derivation,   on  either  side,  and  by  rectilinear 

136 


10V9  (liw 


lo  aqxffiriT     .932 

jnenej^sDaiq  ?.irfJ 

ngiaab  ip  ylinu  all 

lail^d  euo^2i3qu8  yd 


aboun 
the  hues  hav, 
Ight  such  a 
'  not  r 

example  n 

^;1    „„* 

Plate  XIV.    Laristan  Rug  fo^uently  ^--^ 

15.0x5.6  ,,    . 

:-.ieh,  m  c  ... 
From  the  Marquand  Collection 

of  \\\^  lot    h;t/' 

As  fine  a  display  of  the  old  blye  of  Southwestern  Persia  as  one  will  ever 
see.  This  type  of  rug  is  ordinarily  classed  as  of  Shiraz,  but  the  finishings  of 
this  piece  warrant  placing  it,  more  accurately,  among  the  products  of  Laristan. 
Its  unity  of  design  is  as  admirable  as  its  color,  the  only  deviation  from  the  re- 
gular repetition  of  the  pear  pattern  being  few— only  such  as  are  really  required 
by  superstitious  belief. 


It  is  as 
o  base.     In  th 
in  the  ct 
The  groutu 
blue.     " 
of  the 
vith  pene. 
agon  \v 
ated  de 


3 

z 
< 


TURKISH 

flower  stalks.  The  sides  of  the  hexagon  forming  the  two  angles  at 
the  ends  were  serrated  like  the  sides  of  the  arch  in  most  Kulah 
prayer  rugs.  Inside  the  yellow  and  red  defining-lines  of  the  hexagon 
ran  a  complete  circumference  of  rosebuds  arranged  in  the  same  man- 
ner as  the  pinks  about  the  boundary  of  the  oblong.  These  flowers 
were  as  realistic  and  lifelike  as  any  found  in  Persian  weaving.  Then 
the  entire  area  of  the  hexagon  was  filled  with  a  rich  growth  of 
flowers,  made  up  of  two  flowering  shrubs  or  plants,  springing  from 
two  jardinieres,  one  at  each  of  the  terminal  angles.  The  branches 
and  blooms  met  and  mingled  at  the  middle  of  the  space  in  a 
fashion  which,  though  governed  by  the  Anatolian  formality  of  arrange- 
ment, had  yet  much  of  Persian  warmth  and  profusion.  The 
ground  of  the  main  border  stripe  was  blue,  of  a  very  deep  shade,  in 
contrast  with  the  briHiant  sky  blue  of  the  centre.  Upon  it  the  wav- 
ing vine  was  traced  in  red,  in  angles  instead  of  curves,  and  with  its 
flowers,  yellow  and  pale  blue,  putting  forth  upon  straight  stalks.  The 
narrow  borders,  or  guard  stripes,  were  the  small,  uniform,  repeated 
stripes  found  in  Ghiordes  and  Kulah,  except  that  they  were  in  red  and 
white  instead  of  black  and  white,  and  were  ornamented  with  the 
barber  pole  device  of  the  Caucasians,  instead  of  the  small  patterns 
which  adorn  those  characteristic  stripes  in  antique  Ghiordes  and 
Kulah  rugs.  All  around  the  outside  was  a  narrow  band  of  the  pile, 
in  the  same  deep  red  which  was  dominant  throughout  the  entire 
fabric.  Its  brilliancy  had  seemingly  been  softened  by  age,  but  it  still 
glowed  with  a  strange  sort  of  under  light. 

The  ends  were  finished  with  a  narrow,  colored  web,  and  reaching 
partly  across  one  end — the  rest  had  been  worn  away — was  a  sel- 
vage outside  the  web,  formed  by  weaving  back  the  threads  of  the 
warp.  This  had  originally  been  the  finishing  of  both  ends  of  the  rug 
and  the  sole  bit  that  remained  showed  what  long  and  severe  wear  the 
old  piece  had  known.     But  it  had  still  a  thickness  and  evenness  of 

137 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

pile  far  superior  to  that  of  many  new  fabrics.  Its  pile  must  have 
been  originally  of  about  the  same  length  as  the  best  Kir-Shehrs.  The 
sides  were  finished  with  a  narrow  selvage  made  of  extra  threads  of 
red.  The  technical  oddity  of  the  piece  was  that  the  weft  was  thrown 
across,  two  threads  at  once,  and  then  another  row  of  knots  put  in  be- 
fore it  was  carried  back.  The  solidity  afforded  by  this  method  was 
apparent. 

The  modern  Konieh  manufacture  is  almost  wholly  of  the  heavy 
carpet  order.  The  grade  names  of  Oushak  and  Ghiordes  are  used 
and  the  products  are  practically  the  same  as  theirs.  The  Konieh 
moderns  are  noticeable,  however,  for  one  thing,  the  diversity  of  yarns 
used  for  the  warp.  These  are  all  of  wool  and  necessarily  very  stout ; 
in  color  they  are  everything,  and,  as  if  sufficient  variety  could  not  be 
secured  otherwise,  two  colors  are  often  found  in  one  yarn. 

Among  the  heavy  Asia  Minor  "whole  carpets"  there  is  probably 
none  of  more  worth  than  the  Konieh  variety  known  as  Tokmak.  The 
name  itself,  though  really  taken  from  a  town  to  the  west  of  Konieh, 
is  in  its  literal  meaning  descriptive.  Tokmak  is  Turkish  for  compact. 
In  its  primary  use  it  means  "  a  mallet."  The  materials  of  the  Tokmak 
are  well  chosen,  its  patterns  of  a  good  order,  and  in  fineness  and  work- 
manship it  excels,  perhaps,  even  the  best  grades  of  Oushak. 

Kir-Shehr. — The  rugs  of  Kir-Shehr,  in  the  province  of  Angora, 
just  over  the  Konieh  border  to  the  north  of  Lake  Tcholli,  lead  all  the 
Konieh  fabrics  in  texture  and  color.  They  are  renowned  for  brilli- 
ancy, and  the  excellence  of  the  water  in  that  section,  for  the  solution 
of  dyes,  is  proverbial  throughout  Turkey.  The  reds  and  greens, 
especially,  in  many  of  the  older  Kir-Shehrs  are  exemplary,  and  dyes 
for  these  colors  seem  to  have  the  maximum  of  preservative  value, 
since  the  red  portions  of  the  designs,  and  some  of  the  greens  and 
darker  blues  as  well,  protrude  from  the  surface  as  if  they  had  orig- 
inally been  put  in  with  a  longer  yarn,  for  the  purpose  of  making  a 

138 


TURKISH 

raised  pattern.  The  foundation  threads,  which  are  of  wool,  are 
usually  dyed  in  the  color  prevailing  in  the  pile,  like  those  of  the  Ber- 
gamo. 

In  design  the  antiques  are  perhaps  more  elaborate  than  the  old 
Koniehs,  but  the  small  moderns  of  the  two  manufactures  are  sold  inter- 
changeably. Geometry  seems  to  have  been  overcome  in  the  older  Kir- 
Shehrs.  Industrious  attempt  at  Persian  elaboration  is  apparent.  There 
is  a  patent  effort  at  unity  and  integrity  in  the  design,  which,  particularly 
in  its  central  patterns,  follows  closely  the  Arabic  forms.  The  bord- 
ers, too,  are  eloquent  of  a  higher  artistic  aim  than  can  be  found  in  the 
Koniehs.  There  are  fewer  stripes  than  in  most  of  the  Persian  rugs, 
and  the  main  stripes  carry  a  most  pretentious  form  of  ornamentation. 
Border  medallions,  which  are  seen  in  Persian  carpets,  and  are  plainly 
borrowed  from  Arabic  forms,  are  found  in  Kir-Shehrs  of  old  date. 
Rectangular  border  figures  are  relegated  to  the  subordinate  stripes. 

In  the  modern  products  ambition  is  not  so  manifest,  but  the  skil- 
ful blending  of  colors  is  still  noticeable.  The  pile  is  of  good  length, 
making  the  rugs  thick  and  durable.  They  are  meant  for  practi- 
cal use  and  are  much  to  be  desired.  Liberal  use  is  made  of  phe- 
nomenal shades  of  green,  and  brilliant  harmonious  effects  are  produced 
by  them  in  conjunction  with  the  reds  already  mentioned.  Some  of 
the  small  Kir-Shehr  mats  have  several  particolored  tufts  at  each 
end,  composed  of  all  the  yarns  used  in  their  piling,  and  formed  by 
weaving  these  in  clusters  into  the  webs  with  which,  supplemented  by 
a  fringe  of  the  warp,  the  ends  are  finished. 

In  rare  examples  these  little  tufts  are  made  of  human  hair,  and 
sometimes  small  devices  are  woven  with  hair  upon  the  webbing. 

Kaba-Karaman, — Little  need  be  said  of  these.  They  are  sim- 
ply called  *'  Kaba  "  by  the  Smyrna  traders.  The  word  means  "  coarse," 
and  describes  them  accurately  from  every  standpoint.  They  are  made 
by  nomads  in  the  southern  province,  along  the  ranges  of  the  Taurus 

139 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

chain,  toward  the  Zeitoun  district,  and  furnish  a  good  index  to  the 
tribes  which  make  them,  whose  fame  for  roughness,  cruelty  and  quar- 
relsomeness has  gone  over  all  Asia  Minor.  The  Karamanians  are 
migrant  Turkomans,  and  in  their  weaving  preserve  in  rude  form  the 
patterns  prevalent  in  the  Caucasian  countries. 

Most  of  the  Kaba-Karamans  which  come  to  America — and  they 
are  a  multitude — are  small  prayer  rugs  and  sedjadeh.  Their  likeness 
to  the  Caucasian  fabrics  in  design,  heightened  by  the  free  use  of  bold 
patterns  in  white,  enables  salesmen  to  dispose  of  them  for  Derbend. 
Some  of  the  better  specimens  go  as  Karabagh,  and  particularly  good 
ones  as  Shirvan,  and  even  Daghestan,  to  purchasers  who  are  in  a  high 
degree  credulous.  Although  carelessly  made,  they  are  stout,  and 
useful  for  some  purposes. 

Yuruks.  — These  plain  shepherds,*  who  wander  with  their  flocks 
over  the  southern  and  middle  ranges  of  Anatolia,  are  blood  kin  to  the 
Kazaks  of  the  Caucasus  and  the  Kirghiz,  and  the  Turkomans  of  the 
Mosul  districts ;  in  the  fabrics  they  send  to  Smyrna  the  relationship 
is  plain.  The  tribal  name  ** Yuruk "  means  "mountaineer."  It  is 
the  wild,  harsh  life  of  their  mountains  that  they  have  woven  into  their 


'"These  Yuruks  (called  by  Doctor  Chandler  and  most  of  our  old  travellers  'Turkomans') 
are  a  pastoral,  thriving,  simple-minded,  primitively-mannered,  kind-hearted  people,  hospitable  as  far 
as  their  means  allow,  and  always  ready  to  shelter  and  serve  a  traveller,  be  he  Mussulman  or  Chris- 
tian. Though  far  more  religious  than  the  town-dwelling  people,  they  are  less  bigoted  and  intolerant. 
Their  migratory  habits  and  their  breathing  the  free  air  of  the  mountains  during  one  half  of  the  year, 
appear  to  give  them  the  enjoyment  and  appreciation  of  freedom.  Their  women  go  unveiled  even  be- 
fore strangers ;  they  are  very  fond  of  their  children,  whether  male  or  female,  and  generally  have  a 
good  stock  of  them.  ...  At  the  approach  of  winter  the  Yuruks  come  down  with  their  flocks 
and  their  herds  to  the  warm,  sheltered  plains  opening  on  the  Propontis  or  the  ^Egean,  and  at  the 
approach  of  the  burning  hot  summer  they  retire  to  their  cool,  shady  mountains,  where  the  melting 
snows  leave  sweet  and  abundant  pasture.  The  most  thriving  men  I  saw  this  time  over  in  Asia  were 
among  the  Yuruks.  Some  of  their  aghat,  or  head  men,  possess  immense  flocks  of  sheep  and  fine 
herds  of  cattle  ;  and  it  was  a  fine  sight  to  see  them—as  we  did  a  little  later  at  Hadji  Haivat— descend- 
ing from  Olympus  day  after  day  like  a  continuous  stream.  But  for  the  Yuruks  I  do  not  know  what 
the  Turks  would  do  for  their  mutton  !  The  heads  of  tribes  lead  quiteja  patriarchal  life—always  under 
tents— and  many  of  them  reach  a  truly  patriarchal  z.%!t."—CharUs  C  MacFarlane:  ''Turkey  and  Its 
DtsHny" 

X40 


TURKISH 

rugs.  Most  of  these  are  dark  affairs,  with  the  heavy,  ashen  brown 
hue  prevailing,  brightened  by  titanic  patterns  in  wonderfully  rich 
colors.  The  designs  seem  fairly  to  grow  out  from  the  grim  ground- 
work of  dark  sheep's-wool.  They  are  made  up  of  simple  figures, 
which  the  artistic  limitations  of  the  weavers  have  forced  them  to  re- 
peat again  and  again.  The  corner  triangles  and  patches  at  the  side 
of  the  central  fields  not  taken  up  by  the  main  device  are  filled  with 
stripe  effects,  composed  frequently  of  the  hook  pattern  found  in  the 
Caucasians,  although  the  shape  of  it  here  differs  somewhat  from  the 
Caucasian  form. 

Kazil  and  sometimes  brown  wool  are  used  for  the  warp,  but  the 
fierce-looking  knotted  braids  with  which  the  ends  are  adorned  are  of 
white  or  gray  wool,  sometimes  of  cotton.  The  broad  web  of  the  middle- 
Asia  Turkomans  sometimes  appears  here.  The  sides  are  selvaged, 
but  over  the  selvage  in  a  few  rugs  is  an  overcasting  of  colored  yarn, 
which  serves  at  once  to  fortify  the  edge,  and  make  it  more  nearly 
equal  to  the  piled  part  of  the  fabric  in  thickness. 

The  Yuruk  weavings  have  a  peculiar  softness,  proof  positive  that 
they  are  made  to  serve  the  ends  of  personal  comfort  where  that  com- 
modity is  scarce,  and  not  those  of  adornment  or  display  of  skill. 
Some  of  them  lack  symmetry,  but  as  a  rule  they  lie  evenly,  and,  being 
made  in  the  sturdiest  fashion,  wear  like  iron. 

Anatolians. — Small  mats  are  made  throughout  the  Konieh  dis- 
trict, and  in  fact  all  the  middle  and  eastern  part  of  the  peninsula,  and 
sold  under  the  name  of  "  Anatolians."  They  are  seldom  more  than 
four  feet  in  length  and  vary  in  respect  of  narrowness.  Nothing 
could  be  more  heterogeneous  than  are  these  yesteklik^  both  as  to 
color  and  design.  They  embody  every  sort  of  device,  curved  and 
rectilinear.  Those  made  in  recognized  communities  of  weavers  fol- 
low closely  the  rugs  of  the  locality,  but  many  which  come  in  the  great 
consignments  are  merely  individual  conceits,  the  first  thing  that  has 

141 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

come  into  the  weaver's  head.  Their  very  oddity  makes  them  attrac- 
tive. 

The  only  feature  common  to  most  of  them  is  a  soft,  flocky  pile. 
This  is  purely  utilitarian,  since  originally  their  chief  use  was  as  pil- 
low covers.  There  are  in  most  cases  strips  of  cloth  web  at  the  ends 
to  facilitate  making  them  into  pillows.  Clinging  to  the  backs  of 
many  of  these  mats  will  be  found  seeds  and  specks  of  clean  straw, 
showing~that  they  have  already  been  used,  and  that  the  collectors, 
seeking  for  everything  buyable  in  the  way  of  native  textiles,  have 
stripped  them  from  the  pillows  and  sold  them  for  export. 

The  designs  include  everything,  stripes  and  angular  figures,  Sar- 
acenic centre-pieces,  heavy  geometrical  devices  like  those  employed 
by  the  Yuruks,  and  even  the  neat  patterns  of  the  Caucasian  fabrics. 
The  latch-hook  plays  an  important  part,  especially  in  the  mats  made 
by  the  mountaineers,  who,  it  would  seem,  have  brought  it  with  them 
from  the  shores  of  the  Caspian  and  the  uplying  country.  It  is  of 
different  form,  however,  more  like  that  seen  in  Kurdish  rugs  of 
Mosul.  Some  of  the  older  mats  are  really  fine  and  highly  prized  by 
connoisseurs.  Like  the  larger  rugs,  many  of  them  have  suffered  from 
the  use  of  chemical  dyes,  and  pieces  which,  were  their  colors  honest, 
would  have  considerable  value,  are  ruined  by  the  fading  of  their 
principal  areas  to  dirty  and  unsightly  stains.  Poor  coloring  may  often 
be  detected  by  comparison  of  the  ends  of  the  pile  with  the  part 
which  is  below  the  surface  and  has  not  been  exposed  to  light  and 
air.  The  under  part,  even  in  very  old  rugs,  retains  its  original 
brightness. 

There  are  made  all  about  Caesarea  rugs  of  considerable  size  and 
enormous  thickness,  which  in  trade  are  called  "  big  Anatolians." 
They  have  all  the  peculiarities  of  the  large  Kir-Shehrs,  but  the  pile  is 
much  longer  and  thicker.  In  some  specimens  it  is  fully  an  inch  and 
a  quarter  in  length,  and  is  packed  upon  the  warp  as  closely  as  the 

142 


TURKISH 

most  energetic  beating  with  the  batten  can  crowd  it,  and  as  the  yarn 
is  of  the  heaviest  the  fabrics  are  nothing  less  than  cushions,  upon 
which  a  body  might  fall  heavily  a  hundred  times  a  day  without  possi- 
bility of  injury.  There  is  more  wool  to  the  square  inch  in  one  of 
these  rugs  than  in  the  very  thickest  of  Oushak  or  Ghiordes  carpets. 
Much  of  the  material  is  poorly  prepared.  In  some  cases  it  is  not 
thoroughly  cleansed  of  the  animal  oil,  and  after  the  rug  has  been 
used  for  a  time  it  flocks,  like  the  wool  on  the  back  of  a  thick-coated 
sheep. 

The  designs  are  mostly  of  an  archaic,  rectilinear  order.  The 
colors  are  brilliant  and  their  areas  harshly  defined.  There  are  no 
half-tones.  The  anilines  are  prevalent.  If,  however,  interminable 
wear  is  all  that  is  required,  one  need  seek  no  farther  than  these  **  big 
Anatolians." 

In  Caesarea  a  large  general  manufacture  has  sprung  up,  both  of 
big  carpets  of  the  Oushak  type,  and  copies  of  the  Persian  sedjadeh, 
in  both  silk  and  wool.  The  latter  are  known  in  trade  as  Csesarean 
Kirmans,  Caesarean  Sehnas,  etc.  None  of  these  products  bears  any 
relation  to  the  old,  spontaneous  industry  of  the  locality. 

SMYRNA  FABRICS 

I  may  repeat  here  that  the  Smyrna  rugs  of  to-day  are  all  made 
for  market,  and  are  as  purely  commercial  creations  as  Axminster  or 
Wilton.  The  paltry  rates  at  which  weavers  can  be  employed  more 
than  overbalance  the  American  tariff  upon  imported  fabrics,  and  there 
remains  the  indisputable  fact  that  Americans  cannot,  even  with  bet- 
ter facilities  and  the  best  of  Oriental  designs  to  work  from,  satisfac- 
torily imitate  the  Eastern  products. 

The  genuine  antiques  from  this  region  are  growing  lamentably 
scarce,  but  at  long  intervals  a  new  rug  is  found,  made  with  all  the  old 
fineness  and  purity  of  design,  and  colored  with  the  old-fashioned  dyes 

143 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

— a  very  oasis  in  the  desert.  The  manufacture  of  carpets  of  the  Smyrna 
type  is  making  its  way  eastward  with  great  rapidity.  It  was  a  long 
stride  when  looms  for  the  heavy  grades  were  set  up  in  Konieh,  and 
now,  since  Caesarea  became  a  factory,  Caesarea  and  other  towns,  still 
farther  east,  have  begun  to  contribute  their  quota.  The  great  body  of 
moderns  in  the  Smyrna  group,  no  matter  where  made,  are  alike  in  all 
points  save  comparative  coarseness  and  some  technical  differences  such 
as  weight,  solidity  of  texture,  quality  of  wool  in  the  pile,  and  the  mate- 
rials used  for  warp  and  weft.  The  names  by  which  they  are  known 
in  the  trade  serve  merely  to  define  grades.  The  designs  are  anything 
and  everything,  European  as  well  as  Eastern,  and  the  dyes,  in  most 
instances,  largely  chemical. 

The  Smyrna  fabrics  are  surely  entitled  to  the  name  carpet,  if 
size  is  the  desideratum.  They  are  made  now  to  fit  almost  any  floor. 
For  a  time  the  experiment  was  tried  of  making  these  great  affairs  in 
several  sections  and  deftly  joining  them  afterward.  The  process 
proved  unsuccessful,  as  the  pieces  seldom  matched  sufficiently  well  to 
make  the  completed  fabric  seem  a  unit. 

Ghiordes. — About  fifty  miles  northeast  of  Smyrna  lies  the  rug- 
making  town  of  Ghiordes.  You  may  see  it  written  in  nearly  as  many 
ways  as  there  are  stitches  in  its  famous  fabrics — Gordes,  Giirdiz, 
Gierdi,  Yoordis,  Yurdi,  Yordi,  and  many  more.  But  by  whatever 
name,  it  is  to  the  native  always  to  be  revered ;  not  so  much  because 
in  the  popular  belief,  which  cannot  be  shaken  by  archaeological 
doubts,  it  is  the  ancient  Gordium,  home  of  the  Gordian  knot,  by  sev- 
erance of  which,  in  accordance  with  prophecy,  world-compelling  Alex- 
ander became  master  of  all  Asia,  but  because  the  old  Ghiordes  rugs 
have  there  been  woven,  which  to  the  Turk,  and  many  people  besides, 
are  the  acme  of  textile  excellence. 

From  the  limitless  field  of  design  and  the  countless  possibilities 
of  color  combination,  the  weavers  of  Ghiordes,  in  other  centuries, 

144 


A  Nomad  Studio 


TURKISH 

wrought  out  a  type  which  had  universal  recognition  as  their  own ;  a 
type  to  the  chaste  perfection  of  which  the  designers,  whether  of  East 
or  West,  have  not  been  able  beneficially  to  add,  and  from  which  only 
laziness,  haste  or  greed  has  since  prompted  any  man  to  take  aught 
away.  This  type  found  its  greatest  prevalence  in  the  prayer  carpets, 
but  can  still  be  seen  in  floor-coverings,  though  they  have  now  grown 
rare,'  In  the  famous  collections  of  Europe  the  old  Ghiordes  bits  are 
placed  side  by  side  with  the  most  prized  antiques  from  the  Persian 
looms.* 

It  is  an  interesting  middle  ground  which  these  most  renowned 
of  Anatolian  fabrics  occupy,  in  the  matter  of  design.  While  eschew- 
ing the  Persian  realism  and  profusion  in  floral  patterns,  the  Ghiordes 
weavers  have  attained  equal  mastery  of  synchromatic  arrangement. 
From  the  deep  mass  of  solid  color,  sometimes  rich  red,  canary,  or 
pale  green,  but  most  commonly  blue,  which  forms  the  arched  central 
field  of  the  prayer  rugs,  there  is  the  most  delicate  alternation  of  col- 
ors throughout  the  several  borders,  even  to  the  outermost  band.  In 
the  ground  of  the  main  or  middle  border  stripe,  or  perhaps  in  its 
chief  floral  pattern,  will  be  found  recurring,  in  subdued  but  still  dom- 
inant value,  the  central  blue.  In  the  inner  guard  stripe,  next  to  the 
central  field,  the  blue  is  almost  unnoticeable,  giving  place  to  red  or 
yellow,  the  alternating  color.  In  the  outer  one  it  is  stronger,  though 
not  sufficiently  prominent  to  diminish  the  value  of  the  blue  in  the 

'  The  largest  Ghiordes  antique  ever  known  to  have  come  to  New  York  is  eleven  feet  wide  by 
fifteen  feet  long,  and  is  now  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  George  Gould.  Some  years  ago  a  Smyrna 
dealer,  observing  that  the  old  Ghiordes  pieces  were  becoming  scarce,  bought  every  specimen  obtain- 
able. Some  of  them  were  far  gone  with  age,  but  he  set  expert  weavers  at  work  repairing  them,  weav- 
ing patches  in  the  ragged  places,  and  refinishing  the  battered  sides  and  ends.  The  work  occupied 
over  two  years,  as  he  had  collected,  all  told,  more  than  150  pieces.  When  at  last  he  offered  them  for 
sale,  fabulous  prices  were  obtained.  At  present  the  factories  in  Tabriz  and  at  other  places  through- 
cut  the  East  are  producing  these  rugs,  but  few  of  the  copies  have  the  attractiveness  of  the  old  ones, 
probably  because  the  dyes  are  adulterated  with  anilines. 

'  Fine  examples  of  old  Ghiordes  have  lately  come  to  be  used  as  mats  in  the  framing  of  pictures. 
The  body  of  the  rug  is  cut  out,  and  only  the  border  section  left  to  do  service.  The  effect  is  striking, 
but  to  the  lover  of  fine  rugs  the  practice  will  at  first  seem  little  short  of  desecration. 

145 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

broad  main  stripe.  Where  the  prevailing  color  is  red  or  the  pale 
yellow  frequent  in  all  Asia  Minor  prayer  rugs  (though  most  common 
in  the  Kulahs),  the  balance  is  just  as  skilfully  maintained.  To  aid 
in  this  adjustment  of  color-balances  the  daintiest  tints  of  other  colors 
are  used,  pale  Nile  green  and  the  paler  yellow,  which  serve  the  light- 
ing-place of  white,  but  leave  softness  instead  of  a  glare.  Where  par- 
ticularly delicate  color  tone  is  required,  cotton  is  sometimes  used  in 
place  of  wool  for  the  small  white  figures. 

The  patterns  used  in  the  Ghiordes  border  ornament  are  singu- 
larly adapted  to  this  skilful  distribution  of  color.  They  are  chiefly 
floral,  and  so  insure  softness,  but  the  flower  forms,  instead  of  presenting 
the  broad  conventional  surfaces  customary  in  the  Assyrian  patterns, 
or  the  severe  angular  indented  style  of  the  Caucasians,  consist  of 
finely  broken  leaves  and  blossoms,  which  assist  in  the  production  of 
the  most  minute  color  areas.  While  not  harshly  geometrical,  they 
are  quasi-rectilinear  and  so  drawn  as  to  lend  themselves  to  regular 
arrangement.  There  are  in  each  spray  one  blossom  and  two  leaves, 
two  blossoms  and  one  leaf,  or  three  blossoms.  These  are  arranged 
within  an  imaginary  square,  which,  repeated  many  times,  forms  the 
main  border  stripe.  One  corner  of  the  square  is  occupied  by  each 
leaf  or  blossom,  the  remaining  corner  by  the  base  of  the  stem  and  a 
few  tiny  leaves  which  put  out  from  it.  The  fine  color  balance 
between  the  leaves  and  flowers  on  each  branch  is  distinctly  noticeable 
in  all  the  old  examples.  The  border  stripe  is  virtually  made  up  of 
these  squares,  which  are  so  arranged  that  the  stems  of  the  spray  point 
alternately  inward  and  outward.  Thus,  in  many  pieces,  the  succession 
of  stems  produces  the  effect  of  undulation,  without  resort  to  the  con- 
ventional vine  which  is  the  foundation  of  the  whole  Persian  system. 
The  only  pronounced  trace  of  this  is  in  the  narrow  tertiary  stripes 
which  separate  the  borders  proper.  These  carry  a  central  wave  line, 
or  thin  ribbon,  and  can  be  found  in  the  majority  of  Ghiordes  fabrics. 

Z46 


TURKISH 

In  some  Ghiordes  rugs  the  main  border  is  made  up  of  a  pattern 
which  at  first  glance  suggests  a  comb.  This,  examination  will  show, 
is  also  a  leaf  form.  There  is  sometimes  substituted  for  the  main 
border  stripe,  with  its  rich  floral  decoration,  a  series  of  narrow  stripes, 
alternately  very  dark  and  very  light — almost  black  and  white.  This 
feature,  which  is  carried  to  an  even  greater  extreme  in  the  antique 
rugs  of  Kulah  than  in  those  of  Ghiordes,  lends  a  decided  brilliancy  of 
effect,  but  interferes  somewhat  with  the  fine  color  adjustment. 

In  the  spandrels  over  the  arch  of  the  prayer  rugs  there  is  a 
repetition  of  the  pear  patterns  or  some  variation  of  the  characteristic 
trifoliate  border  design,  still  arranged  in  rows,  and  usually  in  an 
emphatic  shade  of  the  alternating  color.  The  entire  oblong  is 
topped  by  a  horizontal  panel  in  which  the  principal  color  is  even 
more  pronounced  than  in  the  border  stripe.  The  patterns  in  this 
panel  and  in  a  second  panel  nearly  always  put  in  underneath  the 
field,  may  be  eccentric  Anatolian  floral  forms,  but  more  frequently 
appears  some  phase  of  the  old  symbolism,  such,  for  example,  as  the 
swastika. 

The  niche  in  the  Ghiordes  prayer  rugs  has  a  distinctive  form.  It 
is  tall.  The  angles  at  the  base  of  the  arch  are  frequently  broken  ; 
the  apex  of  the  arch,  instead  of  running  to  an  acute  point,  is  also 
broken  very  near  the  top,  so  that  its  angle  is  obtuse.  In  many  speci- 
mens the  tree  of  life  pattern,  almost  omnipresent  in  prayer  rugs,  is 
without  trunk,  and  consists  merely  of  protruding  floral  branches, 
drawn  after  the  manner  of  the  flower  designs  in  the  borders  and 
spandrels. 

A  feature  peculiar  to  some  of  the  best  of  these  prayer  rugs  is 
that  the  fringe  on  the  upper  end,  instead  of  being  the  customary 
finishing  of  the  ends  of  the  warp,  is  a  separate  affair,  usually  of  silk, 
sewn  fast,  and  reaching  down  each  side  of  the  rug  for  the  space  of  a 
foot  or  more.     The  weft  is  sometimes  cotton,  and  the  finishing  of 

147 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

the  sides  often  an  extra  selvage  of  silk  in  pale  color  and  of  the  finest 
weaving.  So  much  for  the  antique  Ghiordes.  It  cannot  be  mis- 
taken, except  for  the  product  of  the  neighboring  city  of  Kulah,  and 
once  seen  at  its  best  will  scarcely  be  forgotten. 

As  for  the  modern  Ghiordes,  it  marks  the  maximum  of  change  in 
Turkish  rugs,  as  the  Feraghan  does  in  Persia ;  but  the  Feraghan  has 
been  loyal  to  its  antique  design,  while  the  Ghiordes  has  not.  The 
modern  fabric  is  of  infinitely  coarser  texture  and  astounding  color. 
The  old  vegetable  tingents  are  little  used  save  in  the  finer  grades. 
Even  when  the  dyes  are  vegetable  products  they  are  mordanted 
by  chemical  methods,  and  the  old  formulae  for  preparing  and  fixing 
them  seem  to  have  been  lost. 

There  is  no  special  characteristic  in  the  modern  Ghiordes  by 
which  they  can  be  distinguished  from  other  Smyrna  carpets,  except 
that  for  the  sake  of  economy  a  cotton  thread  is  used,  even  in  the 
best  of  them — Hamidiehs,  Sultaniehs,  Osmaniehs — for  weft* 

The  better  grades  are  known  by  the  greater  number  of  knots 
contained  in  the  square  inch.  The  lowest  have  twenty  and  the 
highest  about  seventy-five.  All  that  these  big  moderns  retain  from 
the  old  Ghiordes  is  the  general  border  arrangement,  and  the  small 
undulating  stripe  referred  to  in  the  description  of  the  antiques.  That 
is  found,  in  some  shape,  in  all  the  latter-day  fabrics  except  the  fan- 
taisie  rugs.  For  the  rest,  the  fine  patterns  so  delicately  wrought  in 
the  old  prayer  rugs  are  abandoned  for  great  and  garish  ones  in  the 
new  carpets.  "Big"  colors  prevail.  There  is  no  limit  to  them. 
Harsh  reds,  greens,  terra  cottas  are  common,  and  all  manner  of  figures 
are  used  to  fill  the  vacant  space.  Frequently  there  is  a  gigantic 
medallion  in  the  centre,  in  red,  green,  or  some  other  heavy  color. 

'  In  the  heavy  whole  carpets  of  Asia  Minor  the  same  grade  names  are  used  by  several  manu- 
facturers. A  name  therefore  cannot  indicate  unerringly  one  and  the  same  fabric  wherever  used,  since 
the  materials  employed  by  the  different  makers  vary  in  merit,  and  there  are  "shop"  diiferenccs  io  the 
dyes  and  finishing. 

148 


TURKISH 

The  remainder  of  the  field  is  filled  in  with  all  sorts  of  disjunct 
figures,  a  reversion,  unprejudiced  critics  would  say,  to  the  barbarian 
tendency  found  in  Kazaks,  Turkomans,  and  the  rough  products  of 
Mosul  and  Southern  Anatolia.  The  pile  of  the  great  carpets  varies  in 
length  from  an  inch  downward.  The  Ghiordes  weaver  of  a  century 
ago  would  have  laughed  at  these  as  monstrosities ;  to-day  they  are 
sold  by  the  ship  load.  The  big  firms  who  make  the  farmaish  have 
in  Ghiordes,  as  in  other  large  factory  towns,  expert  men  whose  busi- 
ness it  is  to  establish  the  scale  of  the  patterns.  They  weave  small 
sections  of  rugs,  which  are  given  to  the  rank  and  file  to  work  by. 

Kulah. — In  former  times  Kulah  produced  rugs  of  much  the 
same  pattern  and  workmanship  as  those  of  Ghiordes,  from  which 
town  it  is  less  than  fifty  miles  distant.  So  few  and  so  fine  were  the 
points  of  difference  that  even  connoisseurs  often  find  it  difficult  to  say 
positively  of  some  of  the  rare  examples  now  offered  for  sale  in  this 
country  whether  they  be  from  the  looms  of  one  city  or  the  other. 
Both  have  the  same  brightness,  delicacy  of  pattern  and  fine  though 
chaste  display  of  color.  In  old  Kulah  prayer  rugs  red  is  oftener  the 
prevailing  color  than  in  those  of  Ghiordes,  and  the  golden  brown 
color  more  frequent  still — sufficiently  so,  in  fact,  to  be  almost  char- 
acteristic. The  niche  or  pointed  arch,  measuring  from  the  base  of 
the  spandrel,  is  seldom  so  tall,  and  its  sides  are  more  apt  to  be  ser- 
rated. The  inner  field  of  the  rug  is  more  frequently  filled  or  partly 
filled  with  small  figures  than  that  of  the  Ghiordes,  in  which  solid  color 
is  a  rule.  These  figures  are  usually  floral,  of  the  Asia  Minor  char- 
acter— three-leaved,  and  with  the  flowers  hanging  down  them — and 
are  arranged  in  rows  like  the  pear  and  shrub  patterns  in  the  field  of 
Tzitzis  and  Kabistans,  but  without  the  separating  lines  or  bars 
found  between  the  rows  in  those  rugs. 

Figures  of  the  same  sort  are  repeated  transversely  to  form  the 
main  border  of  the  Kulahs,  in  lieu  of  the  large  individual  patterns 

149 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

common  to  the  Ghiordes.  The  narrow  alternating  stripes  (dark  and 
light)  referred  to  as  appearing  in  the  Ghiordes  must  really  be  consid- 
ered a  Kulah  mark,  from  the  fact  that  in  the  old  Kulahs,  in- 
stead of  being  used  chiefly  as  a  substitute  for  a  main  stripe  pattern, 
they  are  employed  in  great  number,  sometimes  as  many  as  seven,  or 
eight,  or  even  ten,  inside  and  outside  the  main  border  stripe.  Each 
of  these  narrow  stripes  carries  a  succession  of  small,  separate  devices 
in  place  of  a  running  pattern.  The  narrow  stripe  with  undulating 
pattern,  referred  to  as  a  characteristic  of  all  Ghiordes,  antique  and 
modern,  is  rarely  found  in  pure  Kulahs,  and  the  peculiar  arrangement 
of  the  top  fringe  of  the  Ghiordes  prayer  rugs  is  absent  from  the  Ku- 
lahs, except  in  rare  cases  where  it  has  been  supplied  at  the  dictation 
of  individual  caprice. 

The  extensive  manufacture  of  rugs  for  market  was  somewhat  late 
to  be  established  in  Kulah,  but  so  rapidly  did  it  increase  that  the  town 
became  one  of  the  most  important  rug-making  places  in  Turkey. 
Certain  of  the  makers  here  maintain  with  heroic  fidelity  the  use  of 
vegetable  dyes,  and  strive  to  keep  their  products  up  to  the  old  standard 
of  merit,  but  for  a  time  the  general  quality  declined  so  sadly  that 
government  interference  became  necessary  to  insure  its  restoration. 
Oddly  enough,  much  of  the  weaving  is  done  by  men.  Carpets  of 
the  better  grade  are  made  chiefly  by  the  Christian  population.  They 
taught  the  art  to  the  Turks,  who  speedily  abandoned  it  and  went 
into  the  raising  of  rug  materials.  The  Mohammedans  now  weave 
the  low-grade  carpets.  For  some  years  mohair  was  used  with  an 
admixture  of  wool,  for  piling  what  are  known  as  Kulah  mohairs. 
These  rugs  look  well  when  new,  but  instead  of  improving  with  age,  like 
most  Oriental  fabrics,  lose  their  gloss,  and  when  the  mohair  becomes 
packed,  as  it  does  with  comparatively  brief  use,  unpleasantly  resemble 
felt.  In  design  the  modern  Kulahs  have  nothing  characteristic.  The  old 
models  have  been  abandoned,  and   like  well  nigh  all  the  present  day 

ISO 


TURKISH 

Smyrna  fabrics  they  are  made  from  designs  furnished  them  by  European 
dealers.  The  Kulah  moderns,  with  woolen  pile,  run  almost  entirely  to 
large  sizes.  With  some  few  exceptions,  they  are  inferior  products  ; 
often  coarser  in  texture  even  than  the  Ghiordes  barchanas.  The 
mohairs  are  made  in  all  dimensions,  from  the  single  door-mat  up  to 
the  whole  carpet. 

Demirdji, — Forty  years  ago  Demirdji,  a  town  of  twenty  thou- 
sand, was  unknown  to  the  rug  trade.  Its  later  prosperity  and  fame 
were  the  outgrowth  of  misfortune.  It  is  commonly  said  that  the 
weavers  from  Ghiordes  journeyed  to  Demirdji,  set  up  looms  and 
taught  the  natives  to  weave.  This  is  not  the  fact.  In  1880,  or 
thereabouts,  Demirdji  was  partially  destroyed  by  fire,  and  the  majority 
of  its  population  were  left  homeless,  some  helpless.  In  desperation 
some  hundreds  of  them  went  to  Ghiordes,  where  at  that  time  the 
carpet  industry  was  beginning  to  assume  commercial  proportions. 
They  learned  the  trade,  and  after  a  short  time  returned  home  and 
taught  it  to  their  townsmen.  Skilled  dyers  went  there,  and  finding 
the  water  of  a  good  solvent  quality,  opened  shops.  The  best  of 
wool  is  produced  on  the  plateaus  east  of  Demirdji,  and  to-day  the 
carpets  made  there  are  accounted  among  the  best  in  Turkey.  They 
are  more  compact  than  the  average  Ghiordes,  the  yarn  is  rather 
better  selected,  and  of  double  or  sometimes  of  triple  strand.  The 
pile  is  clipped  shorter  than  in  the  Ghiordes. 

The  rug  trade  in  this  country  seems  of  late  to  have  set  its  face 
most  resolutely  against  the  Demirdji  rugs,  maintaining  that  they 
are  practically  one  with  the  Ghiordes  product,  and  believing  that  the 
Ghiordes  rugs  are  substituted,  while  the  Demirdji  price,  about 
twenty  per  cent  above  that  of  Ghiordes,  is  maintained.  But  as  all 
the  motives  of  rug  sellers  are  not  altruistic,  nor  all  their  practices 
wholly  ingenuous,  the  doom  of  Demirdji  need  not  yet  be  considered 
as  altogether  sealed.    The  Demirdji  quality  known  as  Hindustanieh, 

151 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

is  a  finer  and  perhaps  better  finished  carpet  than  any  of  the  staple 
products  of  Oushak.  It  is  very  closely  trimmed,  but  has  a  large 
number  of  knots  to  the  inch,  which  makes  it  heavier  and  more 
durable  than  others  which  have  a  longer  pile. 

Oushak. — Railroad  connection  with  the  Mediterranean  seaboard 
has  contributed  to  make  Oushak  one  of  the  greatest  rug-making 
towns  in  Asia  Minor,  or  for  that  matter  in  the  world.  In  the  quantity 
of  its  exports,  it  easily  outranks  all  other  seats  of  rug  manufacture. 
Growing  to  keep  pace  with  the  enormous  demand  for  its  products, 
Oushak  now  numbers  its  looms  and  its  weavers  by  thousands.  The 
city  in  olden  time  produced  fine  carpets  of  bold  design  and  superb 
color,  of  which  comparatively  few  examples  remain.  Few  if  any  small 
pieces  are  made  there.  The  whole  working  force  is  applied  to  the 
production  of  great,  deep-piled  carpets,  which  are  found  in  hotels,  in 
the  saloons  of  steamships  and  apartments  of  the  kind,  as  well  as  in 
thousands  of  dwellings,  all  the  world  over.  There  are  half  a  dozen 
varieties,  but  they  are  in  no  wise  determined  by  color  or  design,  as 
the  work  at  Oushak  is  done  largely  from  patterns  furnished  by  Euro- 
peans, and  the  colors,  instead  of  following  an  established  local  prefer- 
ence, vary  with  particular  requirements  in  decoration  or  the  changing 
fashions  of  the  West. 

The  Oushak  carpets  have  a  softness  to  the  foot  not  to  be  antici- 
pated from  their  appearance.  This  results  from  the  invariable  use  of 
wool  for  the  foundation.  The  colorings  of  the  modern  Oushak  are 
similar  to  those  of  the  antiques,  but  the  old  designs,  which  bore  a 
strong  suggestion  of  the  Hispano-Moresque,  were  long  ago  aban- 
doned. It  is  strange  there  has  been  no  revival  of  these  designs, 
since  the  old  pieces  are  now  highly  prized. 

Some  years  ago  a  rug  dealer  in  Smyrna,  who  has  an  extensive 
trade  with  the  United  States,  started  a  steam  dyeing  establishment  in 
Oushak,  to  color  all  the   wools  at  wholesale  with  chemical  dyes. 


Mioio^di  p.'i  nT5i? 


i)rin 


ikih  T^'. 


llj'Jb     •.lU'IK     i 

to  ^ni}t£rn  aiL 


.XT7  -; 


.finif  r/t  I  »rj   i/^i;; 


iff  7^ 


Plate  XV.    Sehna  Khilim  Jj^j.|. 

6.4  X  5.2 

Property  of  the  A  iithor 

The  Sehna  product  is  by  far  the  finest  of  any  known  in  the  khilim  stitch, 
and  has  all  the  appearance  of  completeness  which  marks  the  piled  fabrics  of 
Sehna,  which,  indeed,  the  khilims  follow  rather  closely  in  design  and  color. 
The  pattern  is  the  close  form  of  the  Herati,  for  the  centre,  and  Sehna  has  devel- 
oped it  to  a  greater  measure  of  perfection  than  any  other  weaving  district 
except  Feraghan,  where,  as  will  be  seen,  by  Plate  XIX,  it  is  used  with  almost 
equal  perfection.  In  border,  the  fine  khilims  do  not  usually  employ  the  Herati 
stripes  which  are  found  in  nearly  all  the  piled  rugs.  This  really  is  a  fine  artistic 
touch,  since  the  small  vine  and  flower  design  here  used  is  much  more  appro- 
priate in  a  fabric  of  such  extreme  lightness  as  the  khilim.  In  the  matter  of 
weight,  this  piece  itself  is  little  more  than  a  shawl,  and  the  threads  with  which 
the  pattern  is  woven  are  quite  as  fine  as  many  of  those  used  in  the  making  of 
lace.  It  is  the  habit  of  the  East  to  wash  the  khilims  as  one  washes  a  garment, 
and  even  where  the  dyes  are  vegetable  and  thoroughly  fast,  this  process  and 
the  subsequent  drying  in  the  sun  makes  very  strong  colors  take  on  a  soothing 
softness.  Nothing  could  be  more  delicate  than  the  rose-pink  of  this  covering, 
which  by  the  aid  of  the  blue  is  converted  in  its  general  effect  to  something 
very  like  violet. 

I  Ousl 


io^ 


A.  M.  ENFlAJiAN  ft  C0J 


TURKISH 

Fortunately  for  the  native  dyers,  and  probably  for  the  entire  industry, 
the  undertaking  met  with  no  success.  The  water  at  Oushak  is  of 
such  remarkable  quality  that  much  of  the  wool  from  other  districts  is 
brought  there  for  washing,  but  of  late  much  of  the  Oushak  wool  has 
been  poorly  washed. 

The  several  denominations  of  Oushak  rugs  differ  principally  in 
texture.  The  ordinary  Oushak,  generally  called  Kirman,  has  from 
twenty-five  to  fifty  knots  to  the  square  inch,  and  the  Gulistan,  and 
Enile  or  Inely,  from  fifty  to  ninety.  The  Gulistans  are  finer,  in  many 
respects,  than  the  Eniles. 

The  Yapraks — the  original  Oushak  carpets — can  be  singled  out 
from  the  fact  that  they  are  coarsest  of  all,  and  ordinarily  contain  only 
two  colors,  red  and  blue,  or  red  and  green.  The  warp  and  weft  are 
dyed  in  one  of  them,  and  the  pattern,  in  the  alternating  color,  is  as 
plainly  visible  on  the  back  as  on  the  front  of  the  carpet.  The  Kir- 
mans  are  softer  than  the  other  varieties. 

Carpets  very  like  the  best  of  those  of  Oushak  are  now  made  in 
Kutayah,  whither  master  artisans  were  sent  from  Oushak  to  set  up 
the  looms  and  teach  the  people  the  required  method  of  weaving. 
Kutayah  does  not,  however,  figure  often  as  a  trade  name.  The  pro- 
ducts of  its  looms  are  sold  under  the  Oushak  or  Ghiordes  classifica- 
tions. Many  of  them  are  extremely  good  fabrics,  following  in  the 
quality  of  foundations  and  some  points  of  finish,  both  of  ends  and 
sides,  the  heavier  of  the  Bergamo  rugs.  They  are,  of  course,  so 
much  heavier  than  any  Bergamo,  and  so  altogether  different  in  col- 
oring and  design,  that  their  small  textile  resemblance  affords  not  the 
slightest  aid  to  identification.  They  affect  large  central  fields  of 
plain  color,  blue  or  red,  or  some  such  faint  fretted  diaper  as  is  found 
in  the  grounds  of  Hamadan  and  Samarkand.  The  medallions  and 
rectangular  corner  ornaments,  as  well  as  the  borders,  are  generally 
semi-geometrical  in  character  and  small  in  proportion  to  the  carpet. 

153 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

Bergamo  and  Ladik. — Nowhere  does  the  wealth  of  historic  sug- 
gestion which  lives  in  Oriental  carpets  assail  the  mind  with  more  force 
than  in  the  fabrics  which,  in  comparatively  small  number,  but  until 
lately  inversely  good  quality,  come  from  the  neighborhood  of  these 
two  old  towns,  one  lying  to  the  north  of  Smyrna,  the  other  farther 
to  the  east,  on  the  main  highway  from  the  west  coast  to  the 
Euphrates. 

Bergamo,  as  Pergamos,  was  a  stronghold  of  Christianity  in  its 
earliest  periods,  and  site  of  one  of  the  seven  churches  mentioned  in 
the  Apocalypse.  But  centuries  before  that  they  were  centres  of  civ- 
ilization. Pergamos,  founded,  according  to  tradition,  by  a  son  of 
Hercules,  became  after  innumerable  wars  the  home  of  royal  magni- 
ficence. Its  rulers  discarded  the  barbarism  of  the  strictly  Oriental 
races,  and  espoused  Hellenic  art  and  learning.  The  Roman  arms 
perpetuated  its  greatness.  It  was  renowned  in  its  time  for  libraries, 
altars,  and  sacred  groves.  It  was  the  chief  shrine  of  Asclepius,  and 
all  the  culture  of  the  East  came  to  it  for  one  purpose  or  another. 
The  sculptures  on  its  giant  altar  of  Jupiter  were  famous  throughout 
the  world,  and  the  excavations  made  there  in  recent  years  by  German 
archaeologists  have  shed  more  light,  it  is  said,  upon  the  art  and  archi- 
tecture of  Grecian  antiquity  than  any  others  in  the  Orient. 

Ladik,  a  corruption  of  Laodicea,  is  one  of  several  cities,  scattered 
through  the  Orient,  which  bore  the  name.  It  is  situated  some  dis- 
tance northwest  of  Konieh.  This  locality,  too,  retains  relics  of  an- 
cient grandeur.  Fragments  of  superb  architecture  are  still  found,  and 
coins  of  the  Roman  emperors  are  frequently  turned  up  from  the  soil 
under  which  its  ruins  lie  buried. 

The  towns  have,  of  course,  fallen  victims  to  that  long  decadence 
which  has  made  of  all  Asia  Minor  a  great  burial-ground  of  splendor, 
but  their  rugs  have  retained,  with  a  tenacity  that  is  comforting,  some- 
thing of  high  artistic  character.     These  have  been  almost  the  only 

154 


TURKISH 

districts  within  the  range  of  Smyrniote  influence  which  have  not 
yielded  outright  to  the  blandishments  of  commerce  and  permitted 
themselves  to  become  converted  wholly  into  sweat  shops. 

Their  old  fabrics  have  so  many  points  in  common  that  it  is  diffi- 
cult to  define  the  points  of  variance.  In  both  the  combinations  of 
color  are  superb.  In  no  other  fabrics  made  are  there  to  be  found 
finer  displays  of  red,  crimson,  yellow  and  blue.  In  the  Bergamo  sed- 
jadeh  the  figures  are  notably  bold,  and  large  in  proportion  to  the  size 
of  the  fabric.  This  and  their  artistic  elaboration  distinguish  them 
instantly  from  other  Turkish  carpets.  There  is  more  of  the  preten- 
tious unity  of  design  which  marks  the  high-class  Persian  fabrics,  and 
the  best  examples  have  been  mistaken,  even  by  persons  well  versed, 
for  the  early  Saracenic  masterpieces  of  Cordova  and  Morocco.  The 
design  starts  from  a  central  point,  and  the  figures  and  areas  balance, 
both  in  respect  of  color  and  location,  and  rich  effects  are  produced  by 
gorgeous  massing  as  well  as  by  a  profusion  of  small  and  graceful 
forms.  The  texture  is  a  little  coarser  and  the  pile  a  little  longer  than 
in  the  ancient  Ghiordes. 

In  most  of  the  points  concerning  which  experts  are  critical  the 
Ladiks  are  accounted  the  better  fabrics  of  the  two.  They  are  glos- 
sier, and  somewhat  superior  in  material.  They  have  more  of  bright- 
ness and  life  than  the  Bergamo,  and  are  of  heavier  yarn  and  more 
closely  woven.  They  show  a  liberal  use  of  white  and  scarlet,  in  con- 
trast with  the  madder  reds  which  prevail  in  the  Bergamo.  Ladik 
rugs  resemble  in  some  respects  the  antique  models  of  Ghiordes,  and 
even  more  those  of  Kulah,  particularly  the  prayer  rugs,  in  which  red 
and  yellow  prevail  as  tonic  colors.  The  Kulah  small  stripes,  how- 
ever, are  not  often  found  in  the  Ladiks. 

The  preservation  of  the  fine  old  designs  has  been  accomplished 
by  almost  slavish  copying.  It  is  not  unusual  to  find  a  Ladik  prayer 
rug  which,  though  forty  or  fifty  years  old,  gives  textile  proof  that  it 

«55 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

was  scrupulously  copied  from  an  older  fabric.  It  must  be  confessed 
that  a  deterioration  has  of  late  been  manifest.  At  first  it  was  shown 
in  the  omission  of  the  smaller  details  of  the  design,  and  a  tendency 
to  a  loose  texture.  Since  the  railroad's  invasion  of  this  part  of  the 
Peninsula  the  quantity  of  the  rugs  shipped  out  has  increased  vastly, 
while  the  quality  has  in  large  measure  declined.  Bergamo  and  Ladik 
features,  though  in  very  crude  form,  are  now  found  in  coarse  and 
inferior  small  pieces  which  are  offered  in  large  numbers  under  the 
name  of  Bergamo,  but  which  in  color  and  design  are  unspeakably 
remote  from  the  genuine  antique  products.  The  designs  in  these 
new  rugs  are  Turanian,  nomadic,  heterogeneous,  and  the  color  shock- 
ing. Whether  any  respectable  number  of  these  are  actually  made  in 
the  region  of  Ladik  and  Bergamo  or  not  it  is  hard  to  say.  They 
certainly  are  a  sad  mockery  of  the  name. 

That  the  genuine  products  are  still  to  be  had,  however,  at  ade- 
quate price,  is  beyond  dispute.  In  a  letter  written  from  Eski-Shehr 
Mr.  Denotovich  says : 

"  About  two  hours'  travel  by  rail  south  of  this  place  is  a  station 
called  Sarain.  Ladik  is  some  hours'  horseback  ride  from  the  railroad 
at  that  point.  I  visited  the  neighborhood  some  days  ago,  and  found 
a  fairly  good  number  of  namazlik,  odjaklik  and  even  sedjadeh,  of  the 
old  quality  and  design,  offered  for  sale  in  the  bazaars.  The  weavers 
and  merchants  are  fully  alive  to  the  superior  quality  of  the  rugs,  and 
demand  a  good  price  for  them.  The  dealers  inform  me  that  the 
making  of  that  class  of  rugs  is  still  carried  on  by  the  inhabitants  to 
the  westward  of  Sarain,  in  the  foothills  of  the  mountains  which  lie 
between  Ladik  and  Bergamo." 

The  rugs  of  both  Bergamo  and  Ladik  are  in  the  smaller  sizes. 
They  run  from  three  to  six  feet  wide  by  four  to  eight  feet  long,  and 
are  inclined  to  be  considerably  wider  in  proportion  to  length  than 
other  Asia  Minor  rugs.     The  rich  general  color  effect  is  heightened 

156 


TURKISH 

in  both  varieties  by  dyeing  the  foundation  threads  in  the  princi- 
pal color  of  the  piled  design.  The  weft  is  always  colored,  and, 
closely  woven  upon  three  or  four  outside  threads  of  the  warp,  in  the 
khilim  stitch,  forms  a  tinted  selvage  at  the  sides,  in  harmony  with  the 
general  tone  of  the  rug.  Warp  and  weft  are  woven  into  a  two-  or 
three-inch  red  web  at  the  ends,  usually  striped  with  yellow  or  blue. 
Beyond  this  the  warp  forms  a  small  loose  fringe,  or  sometimes  a  nar- 
row selvage  like  that  of  the  old  Koniehs,  which  are  made  nearby. 
In  some  of  the  older  and  finer  examples  the  finishing  of  the  ends  is 
more  elaborate,  and  even  in  the  coarse  and  irregular  modern  substi- 
tutes, which  retain  no  vestige  of  the  artistic  merit  of  the  antiques, 
the  web  at  the  ends  appears  inwrought  with  its  small  device  indica- 
tive of  superstitious  feeling. 

Ak'Hissar. — This  name  means  the  "  white  citadel."  As  ordinarily 
spoken  it  is  Axdr,  with  a  decided  emphasis  on  the  final  syllable.  The 
town  lies  in  the  mountains,  less  than  a  hundred  miles  northward  from 
Smyrna.  It  was  here,  about  thirty  years  ago,  that  rugs  were  first 
manufactured  in  any  quantity  from  mohair.  The  stubbornness  of  the 
Angora  goat's-hair,  which  had  been  imported  to  the  town  in  1885, 
made  spinning  it  a  difficult  task,  but  a  workable  yarn  was  finally  ob- 
tained by  combining  it  with  wool.  The  output  of  Ak-Hissar  consisted, 
until  lately,  almost  wholly  of  these  mohairs.  They  are  of  the  same 
general  quality  as  those  made  in  Kulah,  and  subject  to  the  same  com- 
ment. The  pile  packs  and  loses  softness  after  a  little  wear.  Both 
warp  and  weft  are  of  coarse  wool. 

When  the  mohair  rugs  were  first  placed  upon  the  market,  and 
for  some  time  thereafter,  they  commanded  a  higher  price  than  almost 
any  of  the  Smyrna  carpets,  but  the  quotations  on  them  nowadays  are 
extremely  low.  The  little  success  achieved  by  the  mohair  fabrics  has 
led  the  weavers  of  Ak-Hissar  to  work  in  wool  yarns.  They  make  car- 
pets very  similar  to  those  of  Ghiordes  and  Oushak. 

157 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

Meles,  or  Carian. — In  some  of  the  seacoast  towns  to  the  south 
of  Smyrna,  and  many  of  the  scattered  islands  of  the  sea,  rugs  are 
made  which  bear  the  name  Meles  (probably  because  their  primary 
market-place  is  Milassa,  or  Melesso),  or  Carian,  from  the  ancient 
name  of  southwestern  Asia  Minor.  They  are  also  called  Makri,  from 
the  Gulf  of  Makri,  near  which  Melesso  is  situated.  The  name  Makri 
has  been  applied  to  the  general  product  of  the  coast  districts  of  south- 
ern Asia  Minor  and  Syria,  and  some  of  the  fabrics  found  in  these 
regions  have  the  broad  Turkman  web  at  the  ends,  similar  to  that  seen 
in  the  Bokharas,  Afghans  and  Yuruks.  As  a  rule  the  Meles  rugs 
are  small,  and  the  texture  is  comparatively  coarse.  The  old  examples, 
now  rare,  are  in  rich  but  mellow  color,  abounding  in  a  peculiar  quality 
of  red  and  a  yellow  such  as  marks  some  exceptional  Ladik  pieces. 
The  colors  in  the  moderns  are  largely  aniline,  and  are  almost  offen- 
sive in  their  brilliancy  and  not  harmoniously  blended  in  the  weaving. 
The  red  conspicuous  in  new  Meles  rugs  is  of  a  peculiar  metallic  quality 
bordering  closely  upon  cerise,  and  yet  retaining  the  solidity  of  a  pure 
carmine.  It  generally  appears  in  striking  mass  in  the  central  field, 
but  the  smaller  patterns  in  the  border  are  so  enlivened  with  it  that 
the  fabric  can  hardly  be  accused  of  inconsistency.  The  other  colors, 
too,  notably  the  yellows,  light  blues  and  greens,  are  of  a  commen- 
surate value.  All  are  garish,  but  after  the  rugs  have  been  in  use  for 
a  time,  and  the  colors  have  had  opportunity  to  fade,  some  of  them 
are  really  attractive.  The  designs  lack  coordination  in  their  smaller 
elements ;  they  impress  one  as  being  jumbled.  With  more  of  unity 
the  extravagant  colors  might  seem  less  tawdry,  but  the  mixture  of 
small  detached  figures  presents  nothing  to  chain  the  attention,  and 
so  the  entire  character  of  the  rug  is  imparted  by  the  hues.  The  de- 
signs are  heterogeneous,  too  ;  this  is  particularly  apparent  in  the  bor- 
ders. In  one  rug  the  Caucasian  latch-hook  is  prominent,  while  in  the 
next  the  character  most  often  repeated  is  the  Persian  pear. 

159 


TURKISH 

The  Ghiordes  knot  is  used  ;  the  warp  is  of  two-  or  three-strand 
wool,  often  colored  at  the  ends  in  some  cheap-looking  shade  of  light 
blue,  or  perhaps  a  violent  pink,  and  left  to  form  a  loose,  unattractive 
fringe  of  considerable  length.  The  weft  is  usually  of  cotton,  and  is 
worked  around  three  or  four  outside  threads  of  the  warp,  forming 
a  compact  selvage  for  the  sides. 


>» 


XI 

PERSIAN  "^ 

CANCELLING  from  consideration  perhaps  as  many  as  half 
a  dozen  varieties  of  Caucasian  and  Asia  Minor  rugs,  well 
nigh  all  of  great  refinement  that  remains  in  the  Oriental 
carpets  of  the  present  day  belongs  to  Persia.  It  is  there  that  the 
Eastern  carpet  as  an  art  product  had  its  first  home,  and  there,  unless 
some  sudden  and  potent  saving  force  intervenes,  will  be  its  last.  Syria, 
Arabia,  and,  in  an  original  artistic  sense,  India,  as  producing  coun- 
tries, have  passed  from  the  reckoning.  Turkey  and  Turkestan  are 
going.  It  must  be  laid  to  the  credit  of  Persia  that,  despite  her  de- 
cadence as  a  state  and  the  painful  decline  of  nearly  all  her  indus- 
tries, a  strenuous  effort  is  being  made  to  uphold  the  quality  of  the 
carpets,  in  the  face  of  demoralizing  influences  which  have  proved  the 
undoing  of  the  craft  in  other  sections  of  the  East.  The  custom 
of  making  truly  fine  carpets  took  root  in  Turkey,  but  only  at  some- 
what isolated  points.  The  Greek  culture,  warring  so  vigorously 
against  Orientalism,  repelled  the  carpet.  It  was  only  where  the  Per- 
sian influence  gained  indisputable  foothold  that  the  art  survived  in 
aught  resembling  elegance,  and  its  practitioners  harked  back  always 
to  Persia  as  an  exemplar.  The  native  artistic  spirit  of  Persia  is  longer- 
lived,  as  it  is  more  spontaneous,  but  it  is  next  to  impossible  to  escape 

l6o 


B    bsJJ 


Plate  XVI.    Herez  Prayer  Rug 

6.1  X  4.8  d     mk 

Properly  of  the  A  uthor 

J        This  is  in  the  strong,  heavy  drawing  almost  universal  in  the  Herez  fabrics. 

*^The  rug  is  new,  but  the  design  is  not  of  modern  making.  In  a  collection  of 
old  pieces  I  have  seen  one  or  two  antiques  that  were  quite  similar  in  figuration, 
although  wrought  with  a  blue  ground.  The  colors  here  are  the  same  as  are 
found  in  the  Herez  and  Gorevan  large  carpets,  although  there  they  appear  in 
huge  medallions.  At  first  glance,  the  prayer-arch  formation  is  scarcely  ap- 
parent, but  when  seen  is  found  to  be  maintained  throughout  the  whole  length 
of  the  rug,  with  repeated  arches  in  heavy  blue  lines,  and  the  tree  feature  run- 
ning through  the  middle.  The  sides  of  the  pattern  are  well  balanced,  but  the 
devices,  mostly  floral,  are  very  odd  in  character.  In  the  border  the  Chinese 
cloud-band  is  repeated,  a  mark  suggestive  of  the  great  prevalence  of  Mongol 
blood  in  the  population  of  Azerbijan. 

nhold  the  quality  of  the 

aich  have  proved  the 

the  East.     The  custom 

some- 
vigorously 

the  art  stiry ived     : 


'  -J/ . 


PERSIAN 

the  conclusion  that  these  are  its  latter  days.  The  mystery  of  Per- 
sia, the  romance  of  it,  are  being  dissipated  at  last.  The  hand  of  the 
West,  or  to  be  more  literal,  the  North,  is  upon  it.  It  and  its  arts 
are  going  the  way  of  all  the  rest  of  the  Orient,  and  though  some 
souls  may  cling  to  tradition,  and  strain  their  eyes  to  catch  "  the 
light's  last  glimmer,"  the  inevitable  has  happened.  Persia  has  become 
a  business  field.  Its  artisans  are  no  longer  fancy  free,  and  even 
when  left  to  their  own  devices  are  disappointing.  Its  idealism,  its  in- 
vention, its  imagination,  and  even  its  manual  deftness  have  in  great 
measure  departed.  Commerce  skurries  along,  like  a  man  with  a  sack, 
in  the  path  where  splendor  has  gone  by,  picking  up  fragments.  He 
mounts  a  box,  now  and  then,  to  auction  to  the  rest  of  the  world  the 
treasures  and  the  gewgaws  he  has  found. 

Even  so,  the  finest  rugs  come  to-day,  as  they  always  have,  out  of 
Persia,  but  the  fabrics  which  were  once  artistic  marvels,  as  well  as 
models,  are  now  made,  and  too  often  poorly  made,  for  market.  It  is 
not  too  much  to  say,  however,  that  the  standard  in  carpets  is  being 
upheld  more  sturdily  than  anything  else  that  the  country  produces. 
This  is  due  in  part  to  the  fact  that  until  recently  the  rug-producing 
districts  of  Persia  have  been  a  terra  incognita  to  the  Western  buyers, 
and  the  difficulties  of  inland  travel  are  apt  to  remain  an  obstacle  for 
some  time  to  come.  Even  the  Constantinople  dealers  have  found  it 
more  to  their  comfort  and  about  as  much  to  their  profit,  to  carry  on' 
their  dealings  with  the  Persian  weavers  from  the  easy  distance  of 
Stamboul,  through  agents  resident  in  Persia.  They  have  foregone 
thus  all  accurate  knowledge  of  the  localities  where  the  various  Persian 
fabrics  are  produced,  and  have  contented  themselves  with  nomen- 
clature which  is  erroneous  chiefly  because  it  is  long  out  of  date. 
America,  which  has  taken  its  knowledge  at  second,  third  or  fourth 
hand  from  them,  has  had  slender  notion  of  the  Persian  classifications. 

But  if  knowledge  has  gone  out  in  scant  measure,   the  industrial 

i6i 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

evils  of  the  West  have  come  into  Persia  in  full  volume,  and  the 
weavers  have  been  only  too  prone  to  welcome  them.  Now — rather 
late  in  the  day  to  be  sure,  but  still  in  time  to  prove  of  infinite  service 
— the  authoritative  forces  of  the  Empire  have  bestirred  themselves  to 
check  the  spread  of  bad  color  and  sham  workmanship.  And  what- 
ever criticism  may  be  passed  on  the  Persian  polity  in  other  respects, 
it  must  be  credited  with  good  intent  in  this.  In  the  chapter  on  Dyers 
and  Dyes  I  have  cited  the  law  lately  issued  by  the  Shah,  prohibiting 
the  importation  of  aniline  colors.  That  it  was  the  outcome  of  Euro- 
pean suggestion  need  not  detract  from  the  wisdom  of  His  Majesty  in 
perceiving  its  ultimate  worth  to  his  Empire,  and  that  he  is  sincere  in 
his  intention  to  enforce  it  has  had  ample  proof.  During  my  brief 
stay  in  the  city  of  Tabriz  there  were  destroyed,  at  public  burning  in 
the  caravanserai  of  the  custom  house,  over  four  thousand  pounds  of 
aniline  dye,  sufficient,  had  it  not  been  intercepted  by  the  officials,  to  have 
spoiled  many  a  batman^  of  honest  wool.  The  time  was  more  than 
ripe  for  a  positive  reiteration  of  the  royal  disapproval  of  anilines,  for 
a  cursory  journey  through  the  bazaars  of  any  Persian  town  revealed 
chemical  dyes  largely  in  preponderance ;  it  was  difficult,  and  in  many 
places  impossible,  [to  find  embroideries  or  fabrics  of  any  sort  which 
contained  only  the  old-fashioned  colors. 

The  carpet  interests  at  Tabriz  have  been  persistent  in  their  con- 
tention for  good  dyes,  since  the  only  ground  for  criticism  adverse  to 
the  Tabriz  products  was  that  the  colors  were  not  fast.  The  effort 
to  maintain  a  high  standard  of  excellence  in  the  output  of  the  Tabriz 
looms  has  been  continuous,  and  the  results  good  in  the  main,  but  it 
seems,  contemplating  all  the  conditions,  to  have  been  rightly  observed, 
in  an  earlier  chapter  of  this  volume,  that  heretofore  the  real  con- 
servative force  has  been  among  the  less  polished  tribes.  Probably  the 
most  trustworthy  Persian  rugs,  "by  and  large,"  to  be  had  in  the 

*  About  ten  pounds. 


PERSIAN 

American  market  to-day  are  those  made  in  remote  parts  of  Eastern, 
Western  and  Southern  Persia.  It  is  in  these,  chiefly,  that  one  finds 
the  admirable  characteristics  both  of  color  and  weaving,  which  once 
distinguished  the  products  of  the  middle  district  as  well.  This  is 
assuming  that  we  are  speaking  of  the  modern  fabrics,  and  not  of  the 
half-worn  but  still  beautiful  creations  of  other  days.  It  is  true  that 
European  designers  are  maintained  by  the  rug  manufacturers  at 
Sultanabad,  and  that  designs  made  up  of  Oriental  elements  but  with 
novel  color  combinations  are  sent  from  America  to  Tabriz  to  be 
wrought,  as  they  are  to  India  and  Turkey,  but  Persian  designers  are 
still  at  work  in  the  bazaars  of  Tabriz,  and  the  dwellers  in  the  moun- 
tains are  weaving  still  the  old  designs,  to  some  of  which  reference  has 
been  made  in  the  chapter  on  Design. 

The  change  of  boundaries  which  Persia  has  gradually  undergone 
has  stripped  from  her  some  large  and  important  rug-making  districts, 
but  the  carpets  from  such  parts,  with  some  few  exceptions,  are  lack- 
ing in  what  is  recognized  as  distinctive  Persian  character.  All  the 
fabrics  illustrative  of  Persian  style  and  method  are  still  made  in  pro- 
vinces which  remain  under  dominion  of  the  Shah,  and  now  and  then 
in  them  is  found  a  gleam  of  the  old  glory. 

A  stout  profession  of  faith  in  the  abiding  capabilities  of  the  Per- 
sian weaver  is  made  by  Mr.  Sidney  A.  T.  Churchill,  for  many  years 
secretary  of  the  British  Legation  at  Teheran.  He  says,  summing  up 
his  review  of  the  carpet  industry  of  Persia  : 

•'  When  the  difficulties  of  the  weaver  are  considered  ;  when  one 
remembers  the  very  little  remuneration  the  weavers  receive  for  their 
labor ;  when  one  reflects  that  they  are  utterly  uneducated,  living  in 
squalor — more  often  in  abject  misery,  fighting  for  bare  existence — in 
a  manner  the  most  remote  from  inducing  to  art  combination  and  high 
tone  in  color  harmony,  with  scarcely  any  encouragement  beyond 
what  comes  from  earning  a  miserable  means  of  existence ;  when  to 

163 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

these  troubles  one  adds  the  seizing  of  labor  at  one  fell  swoop  by  those 
in  authority,  visitation  of  epidemics,  carrying  off  the  weaver  and  bread- 
winner of  a  family  or  retarding  her  work,  and  the  embarrassments  of 
maternity,  the  wonder  is,  not  that  the  carpet  industry  of  the  present 
day  in  Persia  should  have  degenerated,  but  that  under  such  misfor- 
tunes it  should  even  exist. 

''Nevertheless,  I  am  convinced  that  with  sufficient  inducement 
and  encouragement  the  Persian  weaver  of  to-day  could  be  got  to  equal 
the  best  efforts  of  his  predecessors,  if  not  to  excel  them.'' 

Whether  his  sanguine  view  of  the  possibilities  is  warranted  or 
not,  there  is  abundant  proof  that  in  his  description  of  the  drawbacks 
which  beset  the  weaver  Mr.  Churchill  was  well  within  the  facts,  and 
the  conditions  have,  if  anything,  grown  more  severe  in  the  years 
that  have  passed  since  his  departure  from  Persia.  Journeying  down 
from  Julfa,  the  customs  port  on  the  Aras  river,  where  the  Russian 
and  Persian  borders  meet,  the  story  of  poverty  and  depression  is  to 
be  read  all  too  plainly.  Nothing  is  in  plenty,  save  tea  and  vermin. 
These  are  the  staples  at  every  village  khan  and  roadside  caravan- 
serai. In  one  or  two  towns  I  saw,  through  open  gateways  in  the  mud 
walls,  a  small  loom  or  two,  with  rugs  in  process  of  making.  The 
designs  were  pleasing,  partaking  in  a  measure  of  the  characteristics 
of  both  Persia  as  now  recognized  and  the  Caucasian  country  which 
long  ago  passed  from  Persian  control.  This  commingling  of  patterns 
made  them  resemble  to  some  extent  the  weavings  of  Shiraz,  but  the 
colors,  it  was  clear  at  a  glance,  left  much  to  be  desired.  As  we  passed 
along  the  road  which  is  the  main  highway  between  Russia  and  the 
Shah's  domain,  the  entire>country  was  in  a  state  of  excitement  over 
the  expected  advent  of  the  ruler,  who  was  then  on  his  way  out  from 
Teheran  to  seek  treatment  at  the  health  resorts  of  Europe.  Plans 
had  been  made  for  his  reception  all  along  the  route,  and  carpets,  new 
and  indisputably  bright,  had  been  hung  up  to  cover  some  part  of  the 

164 


PERSIAN 

gray  walls,  the  dreary  monotone  of  mud.  But  for  all  the  gaiety  of 
the  fabrics,  and  the  laudable  purpose  they  served,  it  took  only  half  an 
eye  to  see  that  the  dyes  were  aniline,  of  a  sort  to  make  the  author  of 
the  prohibitive  law  shudder,  had  he  vouchsafed  them  any  critical  atten- 
tion. 

In  the  mountain  districts  south,  east  and  west  of  Tabriz,  how- 
ever, and  throughout  the  uplands  along  the  Turkish  border,  there  are 
some  fast  dyes  and  capital  workmanship,  and  it  is  noteworthy  that  save 
for  some  of  the  personally  conducted  carpets  turned  out  from  the 
looms  of  Tabriz,  the  weavings  of  the  tribeswomen  enjoy  the  greatest 
favor  of  any  of  the  fabrics  of  Persia.  The  reason  is  plain.  They 
are  done  at  leisure,  without  any  spur  to  haste,  and  altogether,  much  in 
the  old  fashion.  The  substitution  of  Turkoman  elements,  in 
many  of  the  Persian  loom  products,  for  the  old  Persian  designs,  is 
easily  understood,  when  it  is  remembered  that  the  Persian  of  to-day 
is  a  transplanted  Turk,  that  the  language  used  over  the  greater  part 
of  the  empire  is  a  peculiar  form  of  Turkish,  and  that  the  pure 
Persian,  the  Iranian,  is  a  rara  avis  in  the  land  whose  name  he  wears. 

In  northern  Persia,  at  least,  the  best  carpets  of  tribal  manu- 
facture are  woven  by  the  Kurds,  who  bring  them  to  market  at  Tabriz, 
in  considerable  quantities.  They  ask  rousing  prices  for  the  goods 
upon  arrival,  but  are  kept  upon  tenter-hooks  by  the  dealers  until, 
weary  of  the  atmosphere  of  the  crowded  city,  after  a  fortnight  of 
bootless  waiting  they  dispose  of  their  load  for  what  it  will  readily 
bring,  and  go  back  to  their  tents  in  the  mountains  and  their  endless 
feuds. 

But  the  low  prices  at  which  the  carpets  are  got  by  the  Persian  or 
Armenian  merchant  do  not  maintain  in  his  dealing  with  his  customer, 
for  with  the  advent  of  a  prospective  buyer  from  the  West  the  figures 
are  raised,  and  kept  up  until  he  either  must  purchase  at  about  the 
price  demanded  in  Constantinople,  or  go  home  empty-handed.    It  is  a 

165 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

familiar  saying  in  the  East  that  it  takes  two  Jews  to  beat  one  Armen- 
ian,  and  six  Armenians  to  beat  one  Persian. 

It  is  worthy  of  remark  that  throughout  Persia  the  medallion  idea 
is  taking  the  place  of  the  old  diaper  patterns.  Even  in  such  terehs 
as  the  Herati,  the  Djushaghan  and  even  the  minute  all-over  designs 
of  Sehna,  the  medallion  has  been  introduced,  in  one  form  or  another. 
There  are  medallion  centres,  with  the  ground  about  them  filled  with 
the  old  device,  but  gradually  the  space  covered  in  that  way  is  being 
diminished,  and  solid  grounds  substituted,  for  the  sole  purpose,  appar- 
ently, of  saving  time  and  labor.  Fortunately  there  are  a  few  designs, 
such  as  the  Shah  Abbas  and  the  Mina  Khani,  which  do  not  lend 
themselves  readily  to  that  sort  of  treatment. 

AZERBIJAN  FABRICS 
Important  as  the  part  has  been  which  this  northernmost  province 
has  played  in  all  the  history  of  Persia,  ancient  and  modern,  and  for 
that  matter  in  the  history  of  nations  which  preceded  Persia,  little  has 
been  heard  of  it  as  a  carpet-producing  field  until  recently.  From  its 
geographical  position  Azerbijan  has  been  a  battle-ground  of  the 
peoples  on  either  side  of  it,  and  since  fighting  was  suspended  has 
served  as  chief  point  of  contact  between  Persia  and  the  Northern  and 
Western  civilization.  Its  population,  while  for  the  most  part  Turk- 
ish, is  diversified  by  strong  representation  of  other  races.  The  pro- 
vince is  a  part  of  ancient  Armenia,  and  relics  of  Armenian  domination 
are  many.  In  the  eastern  section,  and  particularly  in  Tabriz,  the 
Mussulmans  are  Shiahs  of  the  most  fanatical  type,  and  in  one  or  two 
instances,  when  the  matter  has  come  to  a  test  in  temporal  affairs,  the 
influence  of  the  mollahs  has  outweighed  that  of  the  Shah  and 
his  ministers.  Around  Urumieh,  in  the  west,  are  Sunni  Mo- 
hammedans, Chaldeans,  Armenians  and  Kurds  of  a  rough  and 
lawless  type.  It  is  no  uncommon  thing,  in  the  bazaars  of  Tabriz, 
during  the  month  of  Muharem,  to  come  upon  a  religious  gathering  at 

i66 


PERSIAN 

noonday.  Fifty  or  perhaps  a  hundred  Persian  merchants  sit 
grouped  about  upon  their  outspread  carpets,  or  perhaps  upon  the 
bales  of  goods,  their  silken  robes  wrapped  around  them  and  their 
huge  lamb's-wool  caps  set  decorously  at  a  backward  angle,  listening 
to  the  voluble  harangue  of  a  mollah,  who,  perched  on  an  improvised 
pedestal  above  them,  lectures  on  the  Prophet's  life,  and  more  espe- 
cially on  the  martyrdom  of  the  Holy  Family,  loyalty  to  whom  is  the 
vital  matter  of  the  Shiah  faith. 

The  making  of  carpets  in  Azerbijan  is  as  old  as  the  province,  but 
it  was  not  until  the  vast  trade  sprang  up  in  Tabriz  that  the  Azerbijan 
fabrics  were  known  as  such.  All  the  industry  here  has  practically 
been  developed  since  1890.  Prior  to  that  Hamadan  was  the  market- 
place for  the  carpets  of  all  that  part  of  Persia,  and  thence  it  arose 
that  the  rugs  of  Azerbijan  were  classified  as  Hamadan  products. 
Even  the  Kurd  weavings  found  their  market  in  Hamadan.  The 
bales  were  made  up  there,  and  the  whole  output  of  the  region,  in 
effect,  shipped  from  there  by  long  camel  trains  to  Trebizond,  and  so 
to  the  West.  Thirty  years  ago  one  or  two  New  York  buyers  made 
their  way  to  Tabriz,  despite  all  obstacles,  in  the  hope  of  securing 
fabulous  bargains  in  all  sorts  and  quantities  of  rugs.  They  found 
nothing  at  all. 

Some  years  later,  more  for  convenience  in  the  conduct  of  money 
transactions  than  anything  else,  the  trade  of  the  districts  to  the  south 
and  east  began  to  go  to  Tabriz,  and  the  carpet  industry  took  on  new 
life  there.  To-day  the  output  of  the  province  is  very  large,  not  alone 
the  rugs  made  in  the  villages,  but  the  thoroughgoing  fabrics  of 
Tabriz  itself,  which,  it  must  be  confessed,  are  largely  the  result  of 
European  stimulation.  There  is  all  possible  diversity  in  the  carpets 
of  Azerbijan.  Among  them  are  found  the  crudest  of  hill  products,  as 
well  as  the  ornate  fabrics  made  by  boy  weavers,  under  the  supervision 
of  the   most   skilful  loom  masters.     And  in  both  classes  the  work 

167 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

done   in  this   hitherto   unvaunted   region   is  certainly   equal,   if   not 
superior,  to  any  carpet-making  known  in  Persia  at  the  present  time. 

Tabriz, — The  type  of  carpet  which  has  come  to  be  known  as 
of  Tabriz  bore  at  first  the  name  of  Kermanshah,  generally,  in  Western 
markets.  This  gave  rise  to  an  erroneous  belief  that  the  carpets  from 
which  the  Tabriz  variety  had  been  developed  were  the  product  of  the 
old  outpost  town  of  Kermanshah  in  the  mountains  of  Ardelan,  the 
province  which  lies  immediately  to  the  south  of  Azerbijan,  and  is 
included  in  the  vaguely  defined  territory  known  as  Kurdistan.  The 
model  on  which  the  Tabriz  rugs  were  really  designed  is  the  ornamental 
and  richly  colored  fabric  of  Kirman  in  southern  Persia,  a  region  which 
has  a  larger  proportion  of  pure  Persian  population  than  any  other  in 
the  realm,  and  which  by  reason  of  its  remoteness  from  the  tracks  of 
travel  has  kept  its  pristine  character  to  a  considerable  degree.  A 
certain  part  of  the  district  bears  the  name  Kirmanshahan  or  Kirman- 
shah,  and  thence  the  confusion  arose. 

The  Tabriz  rugs  of  this  order  have  also  taken  on  some  medal- 
lion features  of  the  northern  weavings,  a  characteristic  which  marks 
the  so-called  Sarakhs,  made  by  the  Turkoman  settlers  around  Bijar 
in  the  Gehrous  district,  and  in  certain  parts  of  the  country  around 
Hamadan.  Upon  this  as  a  foundation  idea  has  been  wrought  all  the 
floral  richness  in  which  the  old  Persian  artists  were  so  fertile.  The 
result  is  a  carpet  which  for  ornamental  quality,  opulence  of  color  and 
fineness  of  texture  fairly  outdid,  for  a  time  at  least,  the  product  of 
Kirman  itself.  It  is  not  easy  to  believe  that  any  modern  fabric  con- 
structed for  practical  use,  of  like  material  and  in  like  method,  has 
surpassed  the  fine,  old,  large  carpets  of  Tabriz  in  craftsmanship. 
They  are  as  nearly  perfect  as  they  can  be  made  by  scrupulous  care  in 
the  selection  of  the  yarn,  loyal  adherence  to  textile  traditions  which  are 
accounted  equivalent  to  gospel,  mastery  of  color  combination,  elabo 
rate  taste  and  versatility  in  design,  united  to  ability  and  thoroughness 

i68 


Plate  XVII.    Old  Persian  Silk  Prayer  Rug 

5-5  X  3.8 
From  the  j^Farquand  Collection 

Singularly  enough,  this  rug  is  identical  in  design  with  that  which  occupied 
this  same  place  in  the  earlier  editions  of  this  book,  save  for  small  differences  in 
the  floral  array  and  coloring,  which  two  centuries'  difference  in  their  ages  would 
quite  justify.  The  other — and  younger — rug  was  made  in  Shiraz,  as  the  parti- 
colored over-casting,  the  figured  webs  and  the  tassels  at  the  corners  told  plainly. 
Whence  this  far  older  fabric  comes  it  is  quite  impossible  to  say,  since  the  fin- 
ishings have  all  been  worn  away.  The  similarity  in  design  would,  as  the  reader 
is  aware,  not  be  conclusive.  But  it  is  plain,  since  this  piece  is  so  very  much 
older  than  the  other,  that  it  was  parent  to  the  other.  Whether  this  rug  itself 
was  the  first  woven  in  this  design,  or  is  itself  a  copy,  is  a  thing  no  man  can 
know.  "At  any  rate  the  god  whom  the  first  designer  worshipped  must  have 
been  a  generous  deity,  for  throughout  it  tells  a  story  of  plenty  and  gladness. 
The  idea  of  actual  growth  and  continued  blessing  is  especially  emphasized  by 
the  jardiniere,  which  is  the  central  feature  of  the  design,  and  from  which  spring 
in  great  prodigality  practically  all  the  flowers  that  Persia  knows.  There  is  cer- 
tainly no  floral  form  to  be  found  in  any  Iranian  carpet  design,  old  or  new,  that 
does  not  smile  at  us  from  this  rug.  The  rose,  the  hare-bell,  the  henna,  the 
poppy  and  all  the  rest,  even  down  to  the  little  blue  forget-me-not,  all  are  here, 
crowded  as  clogely  as  the  weaver  could  crowd  them  and  keep  the  balance j)(_ 
the  design,  and  that  he  has  done  perfectly." 


liiey 


A.  M.  ENFIAJIAN  ft  C^* 


PERSIAN 

in  the  art  of  weaving.  And  yet,  the  true  Persian  loves  better  the 
mellow  richness  of  the  old  Feraghan  or  Djushaghan,  the  fine-wrought 
harmonies  of  Sehna,  or  even  the  flowery  profusions  which  still  bear 
the  names  of  Teheran  and  Ispahan. 

The  reason  for  his  preference  is  plain.  It  is  atmospheric.  There 
is  little  of  spontaneity  in  the  Tabriz  carpets.  They  are  brilliant, 
showy,  pictorial,  beautiful ;  but  they  are  suggestive  of  fresco.  To 
the  Iranian  they  sniff  of  lacquer.  They  are  framed  panels, 
splendid,  to  be  sure,  but  formal.  To  say  that  they  are  not  Oriental 
is  a  great  contradiction,  truly,  and  one  that  some  persons  will  deny, 
but  it  is  nevertheless  true  that  although  representing  something 
nearly  akin  to  perfection  in  every  process  by  which  the  East  produces 
its  textiles,  the  majority  of  Tabriz  fabrics  are  less  Eastern  than  many 
of  the  rude  nomad  rugs. 

The  type  of  Tabriz  is  this:  A  central  field,  the  color  of  ivory  yel- 
lowed by  age;  clear  and  fine  against  it  a  superbly  drawn,  waving 
band  of  ruby  red,  prisoning  in  the  corner  spaces,  rich,  perfectly  tinted 
blooms  of  the  lotus,  in  pink  upon  a  fawn  ground,  and  other  flowers  of 
many  colors,  and  shapely  leaves,  spreading  into  the  shoulders  of  the 
corner  areas,  carried  on  exquisite  stalks  and  vines  of  vernal  green. 
In  the  middle  of  the  broad  field  of  ivory  a  medallion,  traced  in  un- 
dulating curves  of  deep  heliotrope.  Growing  out  of  this  at  either 
end,  ornate  pendants,  heart-shaped,  representations  of  the  great  lamps 
which  hang  in  the  mosques.  All  this  shapely  ornament  filled  with 
flowers  and  green  leaves,  upon  an  old  rose  ground,  and  wrought  to- 
gether with  arabesques  of  bronze.  The  main  border  stripes  ground- 
ed in  deep  Persian  red  or  bright  blue,  with  splendid  floral  devices, 
and  all  the  intervening  spaces  overlaid  with  faint,  shadow  tracery  of 
graceful  leaf  forms,  relieved  at  brief  intervals  with  other  flowers. 
Tiny  floral  patterns  in  the  borders,  in  deep  dull  red  and  green,  upon 
bands  of  misty  blue. 

X69 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

It  sounds  very  like  a  catalogue,  but  it  is  Tabriz.  And  this  bril- 
liant panel,  so  finely  toned  and  shaded  in  difficult  colors,  takes  on  an 
added  finish  and  lustre  from  the  masterly  weaving.  The  fineness  of 
the  knots  which,  tied  one  by  one,  have  grown  into  such  a  creation,  is 
incredible  when  it  is  remembered  that  the  Turkish  system  is  used. 
Into  a  square  inch  of  this  space,  oftentimes,  as  many  as  three  p or  four 
hundred  knots  are  tied.  Hardness,  perfect  compactness,  these  are 
the  final  desiderata  of  the  Tabriz  rug.  In  this  they  follow  the 
Kirman.  When  carpet  manufacture  first  began  to  take  on  im- 
portance in  Tabriz,  Kirman  weavers  were  brought  to  oversee  it,  and 
their  products,  made  on  the  Kirman  designs,  set  the  pattern  for  others, 
who  speedily  took  hold  of  the  work.  The  designs  gained  popularity 
at  once,  but  the  Azerbijan  weavers,  whose  training  had  been  wholly 
in  the  Turkish  school,  persisted  in  the  use  of  what  has  been  termed 
the  Ghiordes  knot.  At  first  the  weaving  was  done  in  houses,  after 
the  primitive  custom,  and  the  carpets  delivered  to  the  merchants  upon 
completion.  The  immediate  favor  which  they  found,  from  the  fact 
that  they  took  the  place  of  the  then  scarce  fabrics  of  Kirman,  led  to 
the  establishment  of  factories,  with  greater  or  smaller  numbers  of 
looms,  and  the  general  installment  of  the  Kirman  manner  of  manu- 
facture. In  Kirman,  as  will  be  shown  elsewhere,  the  best  weaving 
had  been  done,  time  out  of  mind,  by  boys,  under  the  direction  of  a 
loom  master.  This  became  the  system  in  Tabriz,  and  every  year  sees 
addition  to  the  number  and  capacity  of  these  establishments.  The 
carpet  industry  seems  to  grow  in  volume  as  the  city's  other  arts  and 
its  general  prosperity  decline.  Even  now  many  rugs  are  made  in  the 
houses,  on  private  speculation,  but  the  tendency  is  altogether  toward 
centralization,  and  some  of  the  factories  have  as  many  as  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty  looms  in  operation. 

Lads  of  seven  or  eight  years  sit,  half  a  dozen  or  more  in  a  row, 
before  giant  frames,  tying  in  the  knots  with  a  swiftness  and  accu- 

170 


PERSIAN 

racy  which  are  nothing  short  of  phenomenal.  The  eye  of  the  unini- 
tiated will  strive  in  vain  to  follow  the  magical  twistings  of  those  small 
fingers.  For  the  double  purpose  of  drawing  the  yarns  through  from 
the  back  and  cutting  them  when  once  the  knot  is  made  fast,  the 
small  weavers  are  equipped  with  a  knife,  the  blade  of  which  is  beaten 
into  a  hook  at  the  point,  something  after  the  fashion  of  a  crochet- 
needle.  It  serves  them  in  lieu  of  several  extra  fingers,  and  they  man- 
age it  as  expertly  as  they  do  their  own  small  digits.  In  no  land  have 
I  seen  a  more  intelligent  lot  of  boys  than  the  solemn,  black-eyed 
midgets  who  with  big,  black  rimless  wool  caps  on  the  backs  of  their 
close-shaven  polls,  sit  like  old  men  and  weave  the  superb  color  panels 
of  Tabriz. 

In  the  factory  of  Mr.  Hildebrand  F.  Stevens,  whose  guest  I  had 
the  good  fortune  to  be,  there  was  being  woven,  at  the  time  of  my 
visit  to  the  Azerbijan  capital,  a  copy  of  the  renowned  mosque  carpet 
of  Ardebil  (Plate  XXII),  now  among  the  treasures  of  the  South  Ken- 
sington Museum.  This  famous  original  is  perhaps  without  a  peer  in 
the  world  ;  a  masterpiece  of  color,  in  the  most  intricate  of  old  Persian 
designs.  And  the  master  of  the  loom  on  which  the  reproduction  was 
being  wrought  was  a  lad  of  twelve  years.  Little,  pale-faced,  bowed 
with  his  burden  of  responsibility,  he  spent  the  long  summer  days 
walking  up  and  down  behind  the  eight  or  nine  youngsters,  some 
smaller  than  himself,  who  in  that  dim  and  dusty  place  were  tying  in 
the  wondrous  flower  traceries  over  which  the  greatest  Persian 
designer,  some  four  hundred  years  ago,  toiled  in  the  palace  at 
Kashan.  I  scarcely  hope  to  see  the  American  boy  of  twelve,  with- 
out a  day's  schooling  or  an  A,  B,  C  to  his  name,  who  can  carry  on  his 
small  shoulders  a  load  like  that,  or  keep  that  maze  of  colors  in  his 
head. 

In  the  particular  sort  of  Tabriz  carpets  of  which  we  have  spok- 
en, it  is  rarely  that  figures  of  birds,  animals  or  human  beings  are 

171 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

used.  In  this  the  Tabriz  designs  have  departed  from  the  Kirman 
custom,  but  other  designs  are  employed  which  follow  the  model  of 
the  Saruks,  the  fine  fabrics  made  in  Feraghan.  In  such  pieces, 
which  affect  a  more  spontaneous  floral  treatment,  the  birds  and  other 
forms  will  be  found.  In  fact,  the  manufacture  in  Tabriz,  at  the  pres- 
ent time,  is  coming  to  include  all  the  old  and  fine  designs.  Many 
carpets  are  being  made  on  the  designs  of  the  kalin  kiars,  or  printed 
panels,  sold  in  such  quantities  in  Ispahan,  and  used  so  widely  over 
Persia  for  hangings  both  on  walls  and  ceilings.  Old  Asia  Minor 
rugs  are  also  copied,  and  the  weavers  have  lately  gone  so  far  as  to 
take  the  designs  of  Valenciennes  and  other  European  laces,  which 
were  borrowed  from  Persia  centuries  ago  by  the  makers  of  fabrics 
in  Italy,  France  and  Spain. 

A  favorite  device  for  borders  in  Tabriz  rugs  is  a  succession  of 
small  medallions  containing  inscriptions  in  the  Persian  characters. 
It  is  common  to  say  that  these  writings  in  the  "cartouches"  are 
passages  from  the  Koran,  but  it  is  seldom  the  fact.  They  are  more 
frequently  verses  from  the  Persian  poets. 

The  greatest  drawback,  for  a  time,  to  the  success  of  the  Tabriz 
fabrics  was  a  suspicion  of  looseness  in  some  of  the  dyes,  notably  the 
blue.  I  made  this  matter  the  subject  of  some  inquiry  and  observa- 
tion, and  though  the  criticism  on  the  durability  of  the  colors  seems 
overdone  it  is  plain  that  Mr.  Benjamin,  former  United  States 
minister  to  Persia,  spoke  wittingly  when  in  a  passage  elsewhere  cited, 
he  bewailed  the  lost  art  of  making  Persian  blue.  The  dyers  in  the 
great  Persian  rug  centres  frankly  admit  their  inability  to  make  the 
old-time  colors. 

In  Tabriz  they  lay  the  blame,  and  with  some  appearance  of  rea- 
son, to  the  water,  which  though  brought  from  the  outlying  districts 
gathers  a  large  amount  of  impurity  in  its  flow,  and  in  Tabriz  is  dirty 
as  well  as  unhealthy.     The  floating  particles  in  the  water  take  the 

172 


PERSIAN 

color  and  are  deposited  as  dust  upon  the  wool.  This  Is,  In  part  cer- 
tainly, the  cause  of  the  obstinate  blue  shadows  which  are  sometimes 
to  be  seen  tingeing  the  white,  ivory  and  yellow  areas.*  It  is  found, 
however,  that  washing  the  rug  in  cold  water,  sometimes  for  three  or 
four  days,  cleanses  It  of  this  dye-dust,  and  leaves  it  clear  and  bright. 
So  far  as  I  was  able  to  learn,  the  dyes  now  used  in  Tabriz,  for  carpet 
purposes,  are  vegetable.* 

The  warp  of  the  Tabriz  carpets  is  cotton,  and  in  a  few  of  the 
finer  wool  pieces  silk  is  used.  Formerly  It  was  customary  to  dye  the 
weft,  usually  with  the  dominant  color  in  the  carpet,  and  to  weave  with 
it  a  narrow  web  at  the  ends.  This  has  been  abandoned  and  the  ends 
are  now  finished  in  white  after  the  manner  of  most  Persian  fabrics. 
In  fineness  the  Tabriz  work  varies  between  ten  by  ten  and 
twenty  by  twenty  knots. 

The  surface  is  close,  and  vigorous  beating  with  steel  combs 
makes  the  fabrics  very  compact.  There  Is  a  peculiar  arrangement  of 
warp  in  these  carpets,  one  set  of  threads  lying  clear  forward  of  the 
other,  so  that  when  the  knot  is  tied,  albeit  the  Turkish  method  is 
used,  every  ridge  visible  on  the  back  indicates  a  row  of  knots,  unlike 
the  more  loosely-woven  Turkish  fabrics,  in  which  two  rows  are  visible 
on  the  back  for  every  actual  row  of  knots.  For  greater  solidity,  also, 
a  heavy  cotton  cord,  of  the  same  weight  as  that  used  in  the  warp,  is 
sometimes  run  straight  across  between  the  forward  and  rear  warp- 

•  "Among  the  real,  good  old  Persian  carpets  there  are  very  few  patterns,  though  coloring  and 
borders  vary  considerably,  A  good  carpet,  if  new,  is  always  stiff;  the  ends,  when  doubled,  should 
meet  evenly.  There  must  be  no  creases  nor  any  signs  on  the  wrong  side  of  darning  or  '  fine  drawing ' 
having  been  resorted  to  for  taking  out  creases,  and  there  must  be  no  blue  in  the  white  cotton  fringe  at 
the  ends.  Carpets  with  much  white  are  prized,  as  the  white  becomes  primrose,  a  color  which  wears 
well." — Mrs.  Bishop:    "  Journeys  in  Persia  and  Kurdistan." 

*  Since  this  book  was  first  published,  the  "  washing"  or  "doctoring"  of  modern  Oriental  rugs 
and  carpets  has  become  almost  universal,  and  the  solidity  which  was  gradually  developed  in  the 
Tabriz  colors,  strange  to  say,  operated  to  the  hurt  of  the  Tabriz  carpets,  since  they  did  not  yield 
readily,  as  did  the  Kirmans,  to  the  softening  action  of  lime,  and  other  caustic  agents  which  are 
employed  to  soften  color.  This  has  diminished  the  activity  at  the  Tabriz  looms,  but  the  Kirman 
industry  has  grown  proportionately,  and  even  more. 

173 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

threads,  and  between  the  rows  of  knots.  The  weft  itself,  a  lighter 
affair,  takes  in  the  alternate  threads  of  warp  front  and  back,  in  the 
regular  way.  This  filling  is  a  trick  the  Tabriz  weavers  have  learned 
from  their  neighbors  of  Kurdistan. 

There  are  other  imitations  of  the  Kirman  rugs  made  in  late 
years,  notable  among  them  those  woven  at  Herek-keui,  in  Turkey,* 
near  Ismid,  on  the  Sea  of  Marmora.  The  industry  there  is  the  fruit 
of  Imperial  care  for  the  people  of  Turkey.  Silk  is  plentiful  in  the 
neighborhood  and  wool  easily  obtained.  So  great,  indeed,  is  the 
plentitude  of  silk  that  even  in  the  wool  rugs  of  Herek-keui  the  central 
panels  are  often  woven  of  it.  The  Sultan,  like  the  Tabrizlis,  brought 
Kirman  weavers  to  instruct  his  subjects,  and  they  found  apt  pupils. 
The  work  done  here  is  chiefly  the  copying  of  old  Persian  or  Ghiordes 
pieces,  and  the  reversed  direction  of  the  stitches  in  many  of  the  pro- 
ducts shows  the  skilled  rug  handler  that  the  weavers,  using  the  back 
of  the  original  for  their  model,  have  worked  the  new  rug  upside 
down.  The  field  of  Herek-keui  is  one  of  general  imitation,  and  the 
so-called  Teheran  and  Ispahan  designs  appear,  though  not  in  such 
plenty  as  those  of  Kirman  and  Ghiordes.  In  several  towns  scattered 
throughout  Anatolia  similar  enterprises  have  been  begun,  since  the 
success  of  the  Tabriz  experiment  has  been  made  manifest. 

'  Charles  C.  MacFarlane  mentions  this  place  in  his  book,  "  Turkey  and  Its  Destiny,"  published 
in  1850.  Writing  of  the  Catholic  Armenian  Filatura  di  Seta,  a  silk  handling  concern  at  Broussa  en  the 
slope  of  Mount  Olympus,  he  says  :  "  About  a  hundred  and  fifty  women  and  girls  were  employed  here 
in  winding  off  silk  from  the  cocoons.  They  were  all  either  Armenians  or  Greeks.  Turkish  females 
cannot  and  will  not  be  thus  employed.  They  will  rather  do  nothing  and  starve — and  this  was  what  too 
many  of  them  were  doing  at  Broussa,  even  at  this  season  of  the  year.  The  Greek  ladies  were  reported 
to  be  by  far  the  quicker  and  cleverer,  and  the  Armenians  the  more  quiet  and  orderly.  They  could  earn 
from  nine  pence  to  eleven  pence  a  day;  and  this  was  almost  wealth,  for  the  necessaries  of  life  were  amaz- 
ingly "cheap  even  at  this  short  distance  from  the  capital.  An  exemplary  order  and  cleanness  reigned 
throughout  the  establishment,  which  was  under  the  direction  of  two  intelligent,  well-informed  Italians. 
The  silk  they  produced  was  very  superior  to  the  old  Broussa's;  but  it  was  all  sent  to  the  Sultan's  own 
manufactory  at  Herek-keui,  on  the  Gulf  of  Nicomedia,  and  there  either  wasted  or  worked  up  at  a  ruin- 
ous expense,  or  left  to  accumulate  in  dirty,  damp  magazines.  The  wheels  of  this  system  ran  somewhat 
off  the  trams;  and  before  we  left  Turkey  this  Filatura  was  shut  up,  and  the  hundred  and  fifty  females 
were  sent  back  to  their  primal  state  of  idleness  and  poverty." 

174 


PERSIAN 

HEREZ  FABRICS 

The  carpets  of  Herez,  which  for  reasons  already  explained  were 
for  a  long  time  classed  as  a  coarse  grade  of  Hamadan  fabrics,  have 
triumphed  by  sheer  merit  over  the  lack  of  favor  which  such  an  intro- 
duction would  naturally  invoke.  It  has,  in  fact,  been  customary  to 
class  the  weavings  of  all  the  villages  in  the  Herez  neighborhood  as 
belonging  to  the  Hamadan  districts,  not  alone  those  which  were 
plainly  enough  superior  to  the  Hamadan  proper  but  those  held  of 
less  worth.  It  was  very  difficult  to  see  clearly  how  the  Herez  pieces 
and  the  extraordinarily  fine,  well-woven  medallion  carpets  known  as 
Serapi  and  Gorevan  could  come  from  the  same  looms  or  vicinity  as 
the  Hamadans,  most  of  which  can  be  distinguished  anywhere  by  their 
fretted  grounds  and  their  broad  outside  bands  of  what  is  made  to* 
look  like  camel's-hair.  A  very  brief  inquiry  into  the  matter,  near  at 
hand,  made  the  error  plain. 

The  Herez  rug  district,  so  called,  lies  in  Azerbijan,  a  little  jour- 
ney to  the  eastward  of  Tabriz,  on  the  road  which  leads  by  Ardebil  to 
Astara,  the  Russian  outpost,  and  other  ports  on  the  Caspian  sea.  It 
is  wholly  dissociate  from  Hamadan  and  all  its  works,  for  between  the 
two  lies  a  long  stretch  of  Kurdish  country,  where  rugs  of  an  alto- 
gether different  sort  are  made.  Its  relation  with  Tabriz  is  scarcely 
greater,  although  it  has  taken  some  notions  from  the  Tabrizli  weavers 
and  the  product  of  the  district,  perforce,  goes  to  the  capital  to 
be  sold. 

The  story  of  the  Herez  weaving  industry  is  interesting,  and  the 
different  localities  are  so  related  to  one  another  in  it  that  it  is  hard  to 
make  the  customary  division,  but  as  now  produced,  the  rugs  of  the 
district  may  be  set  down  as  Herez  proper,  GOrevaii,  Serapi  and  Bakh- 
shis.     It  will  be  necessary  to  begin  with  the  inferior  variety. 

Bakhshis. — The  first  day's  stage  on  the  route  eastward  from 
Tabriz  brings   the  traveler  to  the  mud-walled  village  of  Bakhshis. 

175 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

The  name  of  this  settlement,  where  the  weaving  is  quite  in  evidence 
as  an  occupation,  has  strangely  enough  never  become  prominent 
among  the  rug-sellers  of  America,  though  its  rugs  long  ago  acquired 
a  standing  among  the  Persian  dealers,  and  its  patterns  were  recog- 
nized among  weavers  throughout  Iran.  This  attracted  the  notice  of 
the  Sultanabad  firm,  which  was  first  to  promote  in  an  extensive  way 
the  weaving  industry  of  the  town.  That  was  almost  twenty  years 
ago.  An  Armenian  had  been  the  leading  spirit  in  the  management 
of  the  business  there,  and  made  advances  to  the  weavers  in  the  usual 
way,  securing  the  carpets  as  soon  as  they  were  finished.  Famine, 
which  is  too  often  recurrent  in  Persia,  brought  about  complications, 
for  in  their  distress  the  weavers  spent  the  money  entrusted  to  them 
for  food  instead  of  wool.  Another  manager  took  up  the  task,  and 
for  a  time  the  rugs  of  Bakhshis  were  among  the  best  of  the  Persian 
whole-carpet  output.  A  dealer  began  selling  them  in  Constantinople 
under  the  name  of  Herez.  Then  when  they  fell  off  in  quality  it  be- 
came necessary  to  find  some  other  title  for  the  native  products  of 
Herez,  which  retained  their  sterling  character.  The  name  of  a 
neighboring  village  was  chosen,  and  from  that  time  Bakhshis  was 
lost  sight  of  in  the  Western  market.  The  deteriorated  carpets  contin- 
ued to  be  known  as  Herez,  and  it  was  thus  that  they  obtained  classi- 
fication as  a  coarser  grade  of  Hamadan,  especially  as  at  that  time 
Hamadan  was  the  point  of  shipment.  The  Bakhshis  of  to-day, 
which  no  dealer  will  call  Bakhshis,  is  loose,  full  of  colors  which  be- 
sides being  of  inferior  quality  are  ill-combined.  The  designs,  while 
of  the  standard  sort,  such  as  Herati,  Sardar,  Shah  Abbas  and  the 
like,  are  wrought  with  such  haste  that  they  are  far  from  perfect. 
The  medallions,  when  used,  are  apt  not  to  be  in  the  centre  of  the 
carpets,  the  borders  are  clumsily  woven  and  without  corner-pieces. 
The  whole  thing  is  eloquent  of  hurry. 

Gorevan, — When  it  became  necessary  for  trade's  sake  to  change 

176 


s 
o 
o 

X 
H 

< 

o 

K 

Q 
(^ 

D 

i4 


PERSIAN 

the  name  of  the  Herez  rugs,  they  were  entered  upon  invoices  of 
shippers  in  Tabriz  as  Gorevan,  the  name  of  a  small  village  in  the 
Herez  district — a  village  which  had  no  status  at  all  as  a  producer  of 
rugs.  The  name  quickly  took  root  and  was  utilized  to  the  full  by 
dealers  in  Constantinople  and  Tiflis,  for  at  that  time,  as  has  been 
said,  European  and  American  buyers  had  scarcely  found  the  way  to 
the  market  in  Tabriz. 

At  first  the  carpets  sold  under  this  name  were  the  old-fashioned 
Herez  products,  which  follow  a  type  in  design  and  color  almost  as 
closely  as  do  the  Tekke  and  Bokhariot  products  of  Turkestan.  The 
Herez  idea,  which  has  lately  regained  all  the  favor  it  lost  by  reason 
of  the  Bakhshis  carpets'  masquerading  under  its  name,  has  for  its 
essential  the  medallion,  but  this  medallion,  as  well  as  the  boundaries 
defining  the  corner  spaces,  is  in  rectilinears  and  not  with  the  curves 
which  figure  in  the  designs  of  Tabriz.  The  corners  are  set  off  by 
serrate  lines,  somewhat  like  the  arches  in  the  Kulah  prayer  rugs. 
The  smaller  figure  in  the  centre  is  plain,  solid  and  unpretentious. 
The  color  scheme  is  almost  unvarying,  and  the  dyes  are  all  of  a  pecu- 
liar tone  which  distinguishes  the  genuine  Herez  at  once  from  other 
fabrics.  The  ground-color,  outside  the  small  central  figure  and 
enclosed  by  the  serrated  lines  across  the  corners,  is  an  extraordinary 
blue,  which  while  bright  is  soft  and  of  a  peculiarly  pleasing  quality. 
The  corner  areas  are  of  a  reddish  brown,  sometimes  with  small 
figures  to  break  the  expanse.  The  borders  in  the  better  examples 
are  in  entire  harmony  with  the  rest  of  the  design.  The  main  stripe 
is  very  broad,  buff-gray  in  the  ground  color,  and  with  pattern  large 
and  clearly  defined.  The  Herez  rugs  have  somewhat  of  the  Sarakhs 
in  design,  but  the  colors  are  softer  and  the  weave  not  so  heavy.  At 
first  sight  they  impress  one  as  being  too  pronounced,  but  they  are  re- 
markably wholesome,  and  in  dining-rooms,  libraries,  or  any  apartment 
where  the  woodwork  and  decoration  are  plain,  and  the  furniture  sub- 

177 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

stantial,  are  among  the  most  desirable  of  the  large  carpets.  They  are 
made  chiefly  by  women  weavers,  who  work  only  in  their  leisure. 
This,  without  doubt,  explains  the  thoroughness  of  the  workmanship. 

Rugs  of  this  type  had  become  scarce  at  the  time  of  my  journey 
into  the  Orient  and  commanded  a  very  high  price,  whether  singly  or 
in  quantity. 

This  was  mainly  due,  of  course,  to  the  sudden  accession  of  popu- 
larity, and  beyond  that  to  the  state  of  practical  famine  that  existed 
throughout  the  Shah's  dominion,  for  the  Herez  weavers  who  have 
escaped  from  the  control  of  the  big  contracting  firms  lacked  money 
to  carry  on  their  work.  That  by  sterling  quality  these  rugs  have 
regained  good  standing  in  spite  of  all  disadvantages  is  an  encourag- 
ing sign  of  the  survival  of  native  ability.  It  goes  far  to  establish,  too, 
the  main  point  for  which  I  am  bound  to  contend,  that  a  just  and 
adequate  price  and  ready  sale  can  be  found  for  honest  rugs,  honestly 
dyed  and  in  native  design. 

After  the  institution  of  the  name  Gorevan,  Tabriz  dealers  began 
sending  designs  into  the  Herez  district  to  be  woven  by  the  women 
there.  This  resulted  in  a  new  type  of  rugs,  bearing  the  name  which 
had  now  come  to  be  associated  with  the  Herez.  It  was  a  medallion, 
but  of  the  Tabriz  and  Kirman  drawing — reminiscent  of  the  sixteenth 
and  seventeenth  century  art  carpets.  The  ground  about  it,  however, 
was  in  solid  cream  color  or  ivory  white,  and  the  border  of  a  heavy  but 
very  ornate  character.  The  thing  aimed  at  was  perfection  in  weav- 
ing, solidity  and  pronunciation.  The  result  proved  the  experiment  a 
wise  one.  The  rugs,  while  for  the  most  part  not  of  carpet  size,  had 
all  the  Herez  and  Bijar  firmness  coupled  with  the  Tabriz  fineness. 
In  thickness  they  were  something  between  the  two.  In  workmanship 
they  left  nothing  to  be  desired.  Their  quality  and  finish  commanded 
a  high  price  and  their  brilliancy  made  them  impossible  in  plain 
rooms.     Gradually,   after  their   introduction,  the  name  of  Gorevan 

«78 


PERSIAN 

came   to   be   applied   almost  exclusively  to  these  rugs,   and  Herez 
resumed  its  rightful  place  in  the  catalogue. 

Serapi. — Encouraged  by  the  success  of  the  new  Gorevans  the 
Herez  weavers  went  a  step  further  and  took  from  the  Tabrizlis 
some  designs  which,  while  preserving  the  medallion  forms  added 
floral  elements  in  the  ground.  These  partook  in  a  small  measure 
of  the  ornamentation  found  in  the  Tabriz  rugs,  but  in  color 
scheme  and  general  device  followed  the  tereh  Lemsa  of  the  Sultan- 
abad  factories — known  in  market  as  the  *'  Extra  Modern  Persian." 
In  quality  they  were  almost  if  not  quite  as  admirable  as  the  high-class 
GOrevans.  These  rugs  were  named  for  the  village  of  Sirab,  and 
American  dealers  have  converted  the  Persian  form  into  Serapi. 

The  graceful  medallion  shape  in  the  Serapi  field,  commonly  in 
old  ivory  or  a  camel's-hair  shade,  is  usually  defined  in  some  other 
light  color  or  combined  with  some  other  area  of  pale  tint,  to  further 
the  general  purpose,  which  is  to  make  the  whole  fabric  light  and 
bright  and  afford  clear  ground  for  the  display  of  the  elaborate  vine 
and  floral  designs,  drawn  in  a  half  impressionistic  fashion  and  in 
colors  strong  but  dull.  All  this  light  in  the  central  part  of  the  carpet 
is  balanced  by  generous  use  of  similar  values  in  the  borders.  The 
Serapi  is  in  nearly  all  respects  a  praiseworthy  and  desirable  thing. 
Despite  some  points  of  resemblance  the  elaborate  details  which  strike 
one  in  the  Tabriz  carpets  are  lacking  here,  and  in  the  color  scheme 
there  is  no  similarity.  In  the  borders  and  sometimes  even  in  the 
field  of  Serapi,  inscriptions  are  found,  either  inclosed  in  Arabic 
medallions  or  on  the  plain  ground.  The  method  of  weaving 
employed  in  all  the  varieties  is  practically  the  same.  The  warp  is 
cotton,  as  in  most  Persian  carpets,  but  the  knot  is  Turkish.  All 
three  varieties  are  apt  to  be  broad  in  proportion  to  their  length, 
instead  of  following  the  long  Persian  shapes.  In  this  section  at  the 
present  time  few  runners  are  found. 

179 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

Kara  Dagh. — Among  the  mountains  in  the  northern  part  of 
Azerbijan  province,  and  to  the  east  of  the  highroad  leading  south 
from  Julfa,  are  shepherd  tribes  of  the  most  bigoted  Shiah  sect,  who 
weave  rugs  somewhat  similar  to  those  made  by  their  neighbors  in 
Karabagh  on  the  north  side  of  the  Aras.  The  designs,  which  are 
bold,  have  more  of  Persian  character  than  the  Karabagh,  and  resem- 
ble in  some  points  those  of  the  Kurdish  rugs.  The  colors  are  rather 
more  diversified  than  those  of  the  Karabagh  and  differently  distrib- 
uted. The  flowers,  which  are  employed  in  imitation  of  the  old  Per- 
sian designs,  are  put  in  broadcast,  which,  it  may  be  well  to  repeat,  is 
the  mark  of  the  nomad.  It  seems  to  be  a  cardinal  principle  with  the 
weavers  of  the  Kara  Dagh  (Black  Mountains),  as  it  is  with  the 
Tchetchens,  never  to  leave  an  expanse  of  ground-color  vacant. 

It  is  noteworthy  that  the  Kara  Dagh  weavings  are  not  often 
seen  in  market,  but  that  they  have  maintained  their  quality  well. 
The  reason  is  not  far  to  seek.  The  Karabagh  weavers  are  within 
two  days  of  the  Russian  railroad.  They  have  the  great  market  of 
Tiflis  at  their  doors,  and  with  that  incentive,  as  shown  in  the  Caucas- 
ian countries,  sacrificed  everything  to  a  rage  for  increased  production. 
The  Kara  Dagh  people,  on  the  other  hand,  took  their  carpets  to 
Tabriz,  where  they  were  brought  into  competition  with  the  Kurd  fab- 
rics and  other  excellent  products  of  the  western  uplands.  The  com- 
parison discouraged  them  and  they  practically  withdrew  from  the 
field  and  continued  to  make  carpets  in  the  old  way,  merely  for  home 
use.  Even  among  these  mountaineers  the  aniline  colors  have  gained 
a  substantial  foothold,  though  not  to  the  extent  noticeable  in  some 
other  localities. 

Weft  and  warp  of  the  Kara  Daghs  are  wool.  The  weft,  if  not 
dyed,  is  usually  in  the  natural  brown  color,  and  is  woven  into  a  sel- 
vage at  the  sides.  At  one  end  the  foundations  are  made  into  a  sel- 
vage and  turned  over,  at  the  other  is  a  selvage  and  fringe. 

1 80 


PERSIAN 

EASTERN  KURDISTAN  FABRICS 
In  some  respects  the  carpets  made  in  Eastern — or  what  is  pop- 
ularly called  Persian — Kurdistan,  are  the  best  that  come  to  market. 
The  Kurds  in  their  fastnesses  have  kept  more  aloof  from  the  demor- 
alization of  towns  than  any  of  the  other  races  found  in  Persia,  and 
have  been  slower  to  take  up  with  the  meretricious  tricks  which  other 
weaving  folk  have  learned  with  such  lamentable  thoroughness. 
Their  rugs  have  always  been  accounted  representative  of  what  is  good 
in  texture  and  color,  and  since  they  are  woven  principally  in  the  tents, 
away  from  town  influences,  the  quality  has  been  fairly  well  preserved 
Another  element  which  goes  far  toward  maintaining  it  is  that  Kur- 
distan has  an  unfailing  supply  of  wool  which  is  not  surpassed  any- 
where, unless  it  be  in  Kirman  and  certain  parts  of  Turkestan.  The 
greater  part  of  the  yarn,  moreover,  is  spun  by  hand  and  with  infinite 
care,  and  the  result  is  apparent  in  most  of  the  rugs  which  the  Kurds 
bring  to  town  for  sale. 

The  aniline  invasion  has  made  headway  among  them,  and  that 
is  not  surprising  in  view  of  the  fact  that  throughout  the  wilds  of 
Kurdistan  the  dye-shops  are  as  rare  as  Eiffel  towers.  The  Kurdish 
weavers  are  their  own  dyers,  and  the  ease  with  which  chemical  dyes 
can  be  mixed  is  tempting.  Nevertheless,  after  examining  many  hun- 
dreds of  rugs,  in  the  bazaars  and  on  the  looms,  I  am  of  opinion  that 
the  Kurds  have  clung  to  the  old  colors  more  tenaciously  than  any 
other  of  the  weaving  peoples.  If  the  old  processes  are  to  be  saved, 
they  must,  it  would  seem,  be  sought  among  the  Kurds.  In  the  dye- 
shops  in  the  towns,  certainly,  they  cannot  be  learned.  Take,  for  ex- 
ample, the  single  matter  of  Persian  blue,  the  essential  color  in  all  high- 
class  Persian  carpets.  It  is  confessedly  lost.  I  put  to  the  most  com- 
petent dyer  I  could  find  many  questions  concerning  his  variegated 
business.  He  expounded  and  explained  and  brought  samples  of  his 
dye  stuffs  and  his  mordants,  but  at  the  close  admitted  that  while  he 

i8l 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

could  make  dozens  of  desirable  blues  the  old  color  was  beyond  him, 
and  he  didn't  know  anybody  who  had  any  more  idea  of  producing  it 
than  he  had.  The  average  Persian  will  lie,  on  principle,  but  the 
proof  that  this  dyer  was  telling  the  truth  was  that  the  best  blue  that 
he  had  to  show  was  a  dead  and  uninspiring  color  when  contrasted 
with  a  ragged  scrap  of  an  antique  Herati  rug,  which  I  had  found 
kicking  about  the  bazaar  in  Tiflis. 

Two  days  later,  looking  over  a  mixed  lot  of  runners  collected 
during  the  preceding  six  months  by  a  Persian  merchant,  I  saw  a  Kur- 
dish pair,  comparatively  new,  but  in  one  of  the  best  old  Persian  de- 
signs, and  grounded  in  that  same  indescribable  dark,  deep  and  yet 
almost  translucent  blue,  which  had  forced  such  a  frank  confession 
from  the  dyer.  Under  a  voluminous  turban,  somewhere  in  the  moun- 
tains of  Kurdistan,  the  ancient  secret  of  color  lurks.  A  decade  hence, 
in  all  likelihood,  it  will  have  gone  the  way  of  all  the  good  things 
which  once  made  the  Persians  the  most  enviable  people  in  the  world. 

In  the  rugs  of  the  Kurdistan  region  there  is  wide  variety. 
Within  its  confines  are  made  not  only  the  finest,  thinnest  and  most  deli- 
cate fabrics  in  Persia,  but  also  a  profusion  of  the  heavy,  board-like  and 
unfoldable  carpets  before  spoken  of  as  "  Lule."  There  are  all  the 
intermediate  grades  and  a  diversity  of  designs.  Most  of  the  spon- 
taneous product  of  the  region  is  in  the  shapes  used  for  component 
parts  of  the  triclinium^  and  the  long  runners  or  kinari  predominate. 
Sedjadeh  are  few. 

Sehna. — In  the  single  matter  of  fineness  of  texture  these  rugs, 
named  for  the  city  of  Sehna,  situated  in  the  mountains  near  the 
Turkish  border,  have  few  equals.  They  are  of  a  peculiar  character 
and  not  apparently  close  kin  to  any  other  floor  covering,  even  of 
Persia.  They  are  fully  equal  to  the  Tabriz  in  quality,  perhaps  better, 
but  in  design,  texture  and  color  theory  are  of  an  altogether  different 
order.     Barring  the  deterioration  which  has  come  to  all  the  Eastern 

182 


PERSIAN 

weavings  they  have  remained  virtually  unchanged,  which  is  singular 
when  the  location  of  the  city  is  borne  in  mind.  On  every  hand 
Sehna  is  surrounded  by  rug-producing  districts,  each  with  its  special 
type  and  all  furnishing  fabrics  as  different  as  possible  from  the 
Sehnas,  but  from  none  of  these  do  the  Sehna  weavers  seem  inclined 
to  borrow. 

In  design  these  rugs  run  to  small  patterns  and  diaper  arrange- 
ment, principally  the  pear  or  the  fish  pattern,  woven  with  infinite 
fineness  and  with  a  skilful  toning  produced  not  by  shading  or  grad- 
ing, but  by  minute  variations  in  color.  The  pear,  and  other  small 
patterns,  with  the  arrangement  of  stalks  with  which  some  of  them  are 
combined  in  the  body  of  the  rug,  as  well  as  the  fine  border  devices, 
are  all  wrought  by  painstaking  and  artistic  method  into  a  harmony 
which  makes  the  whole  fabric  at  once  rich  and  restful  as  it  is  fine  of 
texture.  In  most  of  the  Sehnas  the  diaper  of  small  patterns  covers 
the  entire  field,  but  in  many  a  diamond-shaped  centre-piece  appears. 
This  is  covered  with  a  close  array  of  the  small  figures,  while  the  sur- 
rounding space,  except  the  corners,  is  in  solid  colors  or  in  some  fine 
diaper  pattern  different  from  that  of  the  centre  either  in  the  character 
of  the  device,  or  the  tint  of  the  ground-color,  or  both,  just  sufficiently 
to  make  the  demarcation  distinguishable.  In  any  case  the  even- 
ness and  harmony  are  preserved.  For  ground-color  wool  white 
prevails,  although  blue,  red,  or  the  ivory  tint  is  sometimes  used.  The 
borders  are  divided  into  well-adjusted  stripes,  the  middle  one  very 
wide  in  proportion  to  the  others,  and  carrying  a  form  of  the  Herati 
border  design.  They  are  all  in  fine  consonance  with  the  general 
character  of  the  fabric,  red  and  yellow  predominating  in  the  larger 
border  devices.  A  few  Sehna  rugs  have  the  pear  pattern  wrought 
upon  a  large  scale,  perhaps  half  a  dozen  pears  covering  the  whole 
field,  but  even  in  these  the  device  is  treated  with  the  characteristic 
minuteness  and  the  soft  effect  is  retained. 

«83  ,  . 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

The  maximum  size  of  the  old  Sehnas  is  about  five  feet  wide  by 
eight  feet  long,  but  owing  to  the  constantly  growing  demands  for 
larger  rugs  they  are  now  made  in  other  sizes.  Except  in  rare 
instances  the  modern  fabric  is  inferior  to  the  antique.  The  material 
is  coarser  and  the  colors  not  so  soft,  so  fast  or  so  delicately  blended. 

Sometimes  the  Sehnas  are  confused,  through  the  general  similar- 
ity of  tone  and  pattern,  with  other  varieties,  notably  the  Feraghans, 
but  they  may  be  distinguished  by  the  weave.  The  maximum  in  the 
Feraghans,  even  in  the  antiques,  is  about  one  hundred  and  sixty  knots 
to  the  square  inch.  The  true  Sehna  has  far  more  than  that.  It  has,  in 
fact,  no  equal  in  this  respect  save  the  Kirman,  Tabriz,  Saruk  and  a 
few  very  old  Turkestan  rugs. 

The  warp  is  of  cotton,  linen  or  silk.  So  tightly  are  the  knots  in 
some  of  the  old  Sehnas  put  in  that  a  slight  puckering  is  visible  on  the 
back — an  appearance  suggestive  of  cr6pe.  The  effort  at  compactness 
often  results  in  a  curling  up  of  the  fabric  at  the  sides.  This,  and  a 
growing  decadence  in  the  quality  of  the  colors,  are  the  chief  faults  in 
the  modern  Sehnas.  The  pile  in  the  best  pieces  is  more  closely 
trimmed  than  any  other  rug,  save  the  finest  old  Tekke  or  so-called 
Bokhara.  Imitations  of  the  Sehna  are  now  included  in  the  general 
manufacture  of  Tabriz. 

Kurdistan  Proper, — The  geographical  position  of  Persian  Kurdis- 
tan has  had  a  remarkable  influence  in  fixing  the  character  of  the  rugs 
produced  by  its  tribes.  They  are  different  in  almost  every  respect 
from  those  made  by  the  Kurdish  tribes  just  over  the  border,  in  the 
hill  ranges  of  Mosul  and  Van.  In  these  provinces,  as  has  been  said 
in  the  note  on  the  Mosul  fabrics,  the  products  are  of  the  nomadic 
order,  loose  of  texture  and  rough  in  appearance.  The  Persian  Kurds, 
on  the  contrary,  have  learned  and  continue  to  practice  a  more  finished 
form  of  craft.  Propinquity  to  the  cities  of  Azerbijan,  Ardelan  and 
Luristan  has  made  them  familiar  with  the  carpets  produced  by  the 

184 


if^.-Ti()%j<Jt»«;A 


bnB  ebir 

.loloD  1( 
.ewoIBy 

.83VOiq  , 

bfisJeni  ; 

316  aba"! 
riDu«  ni  . 
ni  bogIui):ii  v'^iil 
33iriJ  nr:  '        ' 


'ijiv/  Iji, 


>f  jjnlM  arlT 
1o  iijo  amoj 

f  ovfirf  unolfi  'prii 
Jduobnu  81  aiHT 
.1  arf)  oJvoeIr,  bni; 
bibn3lq8jp  lo  -yrR 

'■■//■  ?.f  'rj-iifj  Tr,!io 

)iiJ  lo  ^rttllft  adT 

>rij  i^tnio^h^q  \o 

bififl  offogi^bftu 

ixjnidrnoD  ioIo3  j> 
>l  yriiliKvatq  sHj 
:o  r:3bfiH«  J^niialb 


The  mater 
cately  blended 

Plate  XVIII.    Mina  Khani  Sarandaz    -^  Feraghan 

Z^^wr^,^^  |/^,^.^^^<rA-&nt'^f?{fmir.  xcy  knots 

The  Mina  Khani  design  is  one  of  the  simplest,  but  most  effective  that  has 
ever  come  out  of  the  East.  Although  copied  into  the  rugs  of  Khorassan  and 
Turkestan,  after  their  own  methods,  it  belongs  distinctly  to  the  Kurds  and 
they  alone  have  been  able  to  avoid  giving  a  hard  mechanical  appearance  to  it. 
This  is  undoubtedly  due  to  their  independence  and  skill  in  the  use  ot  Colot, 
and  also  to  the  fact  that  the  Kurdish  colors,  particularly  the  blues  and  yellows, 
are  of  a  splendid  quality,  which  lends  to  this  design  its  strength.  This  parti- 
cular piece  is  woven  by  the  ruder  class  of  people,  as  the  lapses  from  accuracy 
and  even  from  general  regularity,  especially  in  the  handling  of  the  vines,  proves. 
The  filling  of  the  side  spaces  in  the  field  with  small  nondescript  items  instead 
of  perfecting  the  vine  arrangement,  shows  this  very  clearly.  The  piece  has 
undergone  hard  wear,  but  is  still  thick  and  incredibly  heavy.  These  reds  are 
always  beautifully  softened  by  age,  which  increases  their  effectiveness  in  such 
a  color  combination  as  this.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  weaver  has  indulged  in 
the  prevailing  Kurdish  trick  of  leaving  bands  of  color,  for  no  less  than  three 
distinct  shades  of  blue  are  here ;  but  it  is  altogether  intentional,  and  the  charm 
of  the  carpet  is  much  enhanced  by  it.  , 


iese  pr  ^n  said 

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Ui 


PERSIAN 

skilled  artisans  of  those  districts,  and  the  points  of  resemblance 
between  the  rugs  are  many.  The  influence  of  Kermanshah,  where 
for  a  long  time  the  finest  of  weaving  was  done,  has  had  much  to  do 
with  uplifting  the  character  of  the  weaving  throughout  the  entire  dis- 
trict. The  ideals  thus  established  seem  to  have  lingered  among  the 
Kurds.  They  have  even  outlived  the  glories  of  Kermanshah  itself. 
In  place  of  the  long  pile  common  among  the  Mosul  Kurds,  their  rela- 
tives of  Persian  Kurdistan  trim  many  of  their  fabrics  almost  to  the 
closeness  of  a  pure  Persian  carpet.  They  show  a  great  diversity  in 
design,  and  a  particular  leaning  to  repetitive  patterns,  arranged  usu- 
ally in  rows  so  as  to  form  a  diaper.  In  some  parts  of  Kurdistan,  to 
the  north,  the  weavers  have  caught  the  Karabagh  and  Kabistan  idea, 
and  have  taken  up  with  large  geometrical  forms  for  the  central  fields, 
and  compromised  by  filling  in  the  remaining  space  with  the  small 
patterns  peculiar  to  Persia.  Another  concession  to  the  Caucasian 
Idea  is  their  choice  of  method.  The  fabrics  are  tied  with  the  Ghior- 
des  knot.  That  with  this  it  is  difficult  to  effect  the  minute  alter- 
nations of  color  distinctive  of  the  finer  Persian  carpets  is,  without 
doubt,  the  reason  that  these  Kurds  have  fallen  back,  when  weaving 
rugs  for  market,  on  Caucasian  designs  for  filling  in  the  central  space. 
Where  the  Sehna  or  Saraband  influence  predominates,  the  entire 
field  of  the  rug  is  well  covered  with  small  figures,  closely  crowded  in 
regular  rows,  vertically  and  horizontally.  Popular  patterns  for  this 
purpose  are  flowering  shrubs,  probably  a  modification  of  the  widely 
distributed  tree  pattern  To  most  of  these  the  limitations  of  stitch 
have  imparted  erectness  and  symmetry  which  only  frequent  diversifi- 
cations of  color  soften  and  save  from  being  mechanical.  A  typical 
form  of  this  device  has  an  upright  stalk,  with  a  cluster  at  its  roots. 
The  first  output  of  branches,  ascending,  is  quite  broad,  heavily 
leaved,  and  flowered  at  the  ends.  Then  come  four  other  and  longer 
branches,  two  on  either  side,  bearing  lumpy  clusters  at  the  ends. 

185 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

One  similar  but  smaller  cross  branch  is  above  these,  with  clustered 
ends,  and  a  clump  of  foliage  at  the  junction  with  the  trunk ;  then  the 
heavily  leaved  crest,  and  above  that  one  flower  as  a  top  tuft,  red  bod- 
ied, perhaps,  with  a  border  of  bright  blue.  All  the  branches  stand  out 
at  right  angles  with  the  stem,  and  so  far  has  the  figure  taken  on  geo- 
metrical character,  that  to  any  but  an  imaginative  person,  study  is  re- 
quired to  discover  that  the  design  in  all  of  its  varied  forms  is 
arboreal.  In  the  Turkish  rugs  and  some  Caucasians  this  same  device, 
in  even  more  geometrical  drawing,  may  be  found  playing  the  part  of 
border.  To  produce  a  precise  stripe  effect  in  the  rows  of  these  pat- 
terns, diagonally,  the  colors  in  the  different  parts  of  the  figure — ^pale 
blue,  brown,  old  gold,  black,  olive,  and  several  shades  of  red — are 
alternated  in  every  second  figure.  On  the  ground  of  dark  blue  or 
perhaps  red,  this  effect  is  striking,  and  the  number  of  these  figures, 
crowded  into  the  field,  makes  it  seem  ornate  and  flowery.  The  main 
border  often  carries  the  same  pattern. 

Frequently,  however,  there  is  in  the  body  of  the  rug  a  central 
design  of  some  established  medallion  shape,  covered  with  small  figures, 
while  the  space  about  it,  if  dark  blue,  is  filled  with  repetition  of  the 
pear,  in  dark  red.  If  the  ground-color  be  red  the  pear  figure  is  in 
blue.  Occasionally  the  central  design  consists  of  several  large, 
lozenge-shaped  figures,  minutely  decorated  with  smaller  patterns.  In 
the  border,  which  carries  a  rich  array  of  red  and  blue,  relieved  with 
bright  yellow  in  small  dashes,  are  small,  variegated  block  and  key 
patterns  carried  through  the  length  of  the  stripe.  The  wider  stripes 
are  varied  with  daisies,  wrought  with  much  accuracy.  The  borders 
show  concessions  to  both  the  influences  by  which  the  makers  are  sur- 
rounded. 

The  Kurdistans  are  finished  on  one  end  with  a  small  fringe,  and 
the  sides  are  overcast  with  worsted  yarn,  usually  some  shade  of 
brown.     The  general  effect  and  finish  must  be  relied  upon  to  distin- 

186 


PERSIAN 

guish  them,  as  their  patterns  are  too  widely  used  in  other  rugs,  both 
Persian  and  Turkish,  to  be  at  all  characteristic.  One  mark  which 
is  almost  invariably  found  in  Kurd  rugs  is  a  single  line  in  colored 
wools,  embroidered  on  the  webbing  across  one  or  both  ends.  The 
warp  should  be  wool.  The  "  Irans " — as  certain  of  the  Persian 
nomad  products  are  called — are  often  mistaken  for  Kurdistans,  but 
in  almost  every  case  may  be  recognized  by  their  cotton  warp,  and 
usually  by  a  difference  in  the  knot  used. 

Kurdistan  rugs  are  very  often  found  in  which  a  coarse,  heavy, 
two-strand  wool  yarn  is  passed  straight  across,  between  front  and 
back  weft-threads,  after  every  row  of  knots,  as  filling.  In  such,  one 
of  the  regular  weft-threads  is  omitted.  The  weft  is  the  smallest  of 
dyed  single-strand  yarns,  just  sufficient  to  hold  the  filling  and  knots 
in  place.  The  result  is  amazing  firmness  and  durability.  The  Bijars 
illustrate  this  method  of  filling. 

Kermanshah. — Amid  the  mountains  which  stand  sentinel  against 
the  Turk,  all  along  the  western  border,  is  the  outpost  town  of  Ker- 
manshah. It  has  long  been  a  foremost  town  of  the  province  of 
Ardelan,  and  the  chief  fortress  of  the  West.  Any  intelligent  Persian 
will  tell  you  that  it  got  the  name  of  Kermanshah  from  the  fact  that 
one  of  the  governors  who  was  sent  to  administer  its  affairs,  so  long 
ago  that  tradition  fails  to  fix  the  time,  came  from  the  southern  prov- 
ince of  Kirman.  However  this  may  be,  Kermanshah,  with  its  famous 
bazaars,  its  extensive  garrison  and  its  busy  population,  was  a  place  of 
moment,  and,  thanks  to  the  carpet-making  carried  on  in  the  palace  under 
the  governor's  patronage,  its  weavings  became  famous  throughout  all 
northern  Persia.  It  has  been  customary,  until  very  lately,  among  the 
rug  dealers  of  the  West  and  Constantinople  as  well,  to  attribute  the 
Kirman  rugs  to  Kermanshah.  The  fabrics  here,  however,  while 
more  pretentious  in  some  ways  than  those  of  the  surrounding  Kurd 
country,  are  no  longer  to  be  classed  with  the  weavings  of  Kirman. 

187 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

The  days  of  the  palace  are  ended.  The  population  of  the  town 
has  dwindled  from  forty  or  fifty  thousand  to  one-fifth  the  number. 
There  is  still  a  garrison  of  some  strength  as  Persian  garrisons  go, 
which  is  saying  little.  The  fortress  and  the  walls  are  in  ruins,  the 
once  crowded  caravanserais  are  empty.  The  carpet  industry,  as  a 
matter  of  fact,  is  no  longer  carried  on  to  any  extent  in  the  town. 

The  rugs  which  come  to  the  Persian  markets  with  the  name  of 
Kermanshah  are  chiefly  made  in  the  surrounding  mountains,  but  the 
weavers  hold  in  some  measure  to  the  traditions  of  the  olden  time. 
This  is  evident  not  only  in  the  designs  but  the  shape  of  the  fabrics. 
The  sedjadeh  are  still  in  vogue,  which  cannot  be  said  of  the  other 
districts  in  that  part  of  Persia,  most  of  which  produce  only  runners 
and  the  large,  long  centre-pieces. 

In  design,  the  best  of  the  Kermanshahs  affect  the  floral  treat- 
ment. The  texture  is  looser  than  in  many  of  the  rugs  in  Persian 
Kurdistan.  The  pear  is  used  in  design,  but  in  the  coarser  rugs  it  is 
woven  after  the  manner  of  the  Mosuls.  In  many  ways,  indeed,  the 
influence  of  the  Turkish  models  is  made  manifest  in  the  common 
grade,  but  in  the  better  pieces  much  of  Persian  quality  is  displayed. 
The  pear  pattern  in  these,  for  example,  has  quite  the  Iranian  charac- 
ter. Instead  of  being  drawn  as  it  is  in  the  Saraband  and  Shiraz,  it 
appears  with  a  shape  and  degree  of  elaboration  suggestive  of  the 
Khorassan  and  Kirman  designs.  A  singular  arrangement  of  the  pat- 
tern, too,  is  frequently  seen  in  the  Kermanshahs.  Instead  of  being 
placed  in  rows,  unattended  by  any  other  element,  the  pears  are 
trained  on  undulating  vines,  which  run  diagonally  across  the  field,  and 
each  figure  is  surrounded  by  some  floral  conceit.  This  design  is  also 
found  in  Kirman  rugs  and  lately  has  been  adopted,  as  everything  has, 
by  the  factory  weavers  of  Tabriz.  The  colors  in  some  of  these  floral 
designs  are  rich  and  unusually  good,  and  considerable  skill  is  shown 
in  the  shading,  which  in  most  districts  has  been  abandoned. 

i88 


PERSIAN 

There  are  also  found  in  abundance  the  standard  Persian  and 
Kurdish  terehs.  The  knot  of  the  Kermanshah  is  Turkish,  the  warp 
sometimes  cotton,  another  survival  of  the  palace  teaching.  The  sides 
are  overcast  with  dark  brown  wool  like  most  of  the  Kurd  rugs,  and 
the  finishing  of  the  ends  conforms  to  the  custom  of  the  group. 

Sarakhs  or  Bijar. — These  are  the  true  "  Lul^s."  They  take  their 
name  from  the  old  fortified  city  on  the  Tajend,  in  the  angle  where 
Persia  and  Afghanistan  come  to  the  borders  of  Turkestan,  and 
where  now  the  Russian  bear  rests  preparatory  to  swallowing  both. 
They  are  of  what  may  be  termed  native  production,  to  distinguish 
them  from  factory  products  of  the  cities.  Their  makers  are  Turkish 
tribesmen  who  came  under  Genghis  and  Tamur  from  the  districts 
around  old  Sarakhs  and  settled  in  the  neighborhood  of  Bijar,  in  the 
Gehrous  district  of  Kurdistan.  The  name  Sarakhs  is  not  known  in 
Persia  in  connection  with  these  carpets.  Some  of  the  older  pieces 
which  are  preserved  in  collections  were  apparently  the  work  of  skilled 
artisans,  and  the  graceful  Arabi-Persian  curves  were  used  in  defining 
the  great  central  medallions  which  constitute  the  Sarakhs  design. 
The  ornamentation  was  limited,  since  in  the  old  carpets  even  more 
than  in  the  new,  the  characteristics  were  simplicity  and  power. 
The  medallions  found  in  the  best  Gdrevans  are  imitations  of  the 
oldest  and  finest  Sarakhs.  The  modern  fabrics  preserve  the  gen- 
eral design,  the  strong  color-massing,  and  for  the  most  part  the 
colors  also ;  but  they  have  yielded  to  the  seduction  of  the  straight 
line. 

The  hues  are  few  and  elementary.  Blending  seems  to  be  an 
almost  unknown  art  to  these  people,  but  the  plain  grounds  are  dexter- 
ously shaded.  In  the  staple  carpets  recently  turned  out  at  some 
weaving  centres,  effort  has  been  made  to  imitate  this  peculiarity,  but 
the  intent  is  so  apparent  and  the  deftness  of  the  Sarakhs  weavers  so 
plainly  lacking,  that  the  charm  of  the  thing  is  lost,  and  the  variation 

189 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

set  down  as  rayah,  one  of  the  cardinal  sins  in  the  eyes  of  the  mas- 
ter weaver  of  to-day. 

Red  predominates  In  the  Sarakhs,  but  the  primary  blues,  greens, 
yellows  and  even  black  and  white  are  used  in  brave  plenty.  The 
common  design  is  a  central  piece  in  a  medallion  frame,  surrounded  by 
a  field  of  plain  color.  The  corners  are  set  off  sometimes  in  curves, 
but  oftener  in  rectangular  triangles,  a  decadent  substitute  for  the 
masterly  scrolls  which  beautified  the  old  examples.  The  grounds  of 
the  border,  field  and  centre-piece,  if  not  in  any  of  the  camel's-hair 
shades,  are  usually  in  the  wonderful  Sarakhs  red  or  some  bright  blue, 
upon  which  are  boldly  displayed  vari  colored  rectilinear  flowers  or 
unequal  figures  of  some  sort.  The  pear  shape,  crudely  drawn,  is 
often  met  with,  and  the  daisy  of  our  own  fields  is  truthfully  if  rudely 
shown. 

Nothing  could  be  more  indescribably  gay  than  the  modern 
Sarakhs  carpet  of  purely  nomad  manufacture.  The  fear  which 
haunts  the  school-trained  colorist,  of  clashing  with  accepted  theory, 
does  not  hamper  these  hill  folk.  Contrast,  not  complement,  is  their 
creed.  They  have  been  accustomed  to  see  the  greenest  of  trees 
against  the  bluest  of  skies,  the  most  flamboyant  of  reds  and  yellows 
side  by  side  in  the  sunset.  This  model  they  know  no  valid  reason  for 
not  following,  with  such  fidelity  as  their  scant  skill  in  dyeing  makes 
possible.  The  result  is  a  marvel  of  consistency  in  high  key.  These 
rugs  have  a  particular  place  in  furnishing.  Western  industry  and  in- 
vention probably  could  not  have  designed  them  or  an  equivalent  for 
them,  and  if  it  could,  would  not  have  dared.  Every  color  is  a  climax, 
and  their  crudity  gives  a  breadth  and  massing  which  are  most  avail- 
able to  complete  and  set  o£f  apartments  where  the  wood,  walls  and 
furniture  are  dark,  and  the  general  effect  is  coarse  and  heavy.  Their 
design  has  been  followed,  and  elaborated,  in  many  of  the  great  Ana- 
tolian carpets. 

190 


PERSIAN 

There  is  in  some  of  them,  too,  a  brightness  other  than  that  of 
tingent.  The  weavers  have  drawn,  from  some  source,  a  reckless 
tendency  to  ornament  their  works  by  the  inweaving  of  birds,  animals 
and  men.  Their  production  does  not  seem  to  be  along  the  Chinese 
or  Persian  lines,  however.  The  figures  are  more  European,  but  it  is 
the  pictorial  art  of  the  child  rather  than  of  the  ancient.  The  men 
and  cows,  the  hens,  horses  and  sheep  are  of  the  selfsame  order  as 
those  which  the  American  school  boy  draws  upon  his  slate,  but  there 
is  abundant  evidence  of  close  observation,  of  a  humor  far  keener  and 
broader  than  the  power  of  expression  which  bodies  it  forth.  It  is  the 
humor  of  the  unskilled  caricaturist.  The  man  with  the  three-cornered 
head  who  stalks  in  the  field  of  the  nomad  Sarakhs,  has  a  body  shaped 
like  a  city  block,  viewed  from  the  avenue  side,  but  the  rainbow  of 
gaudy  horizontal  stripes  which  makes  his  whole  torso  gay,  is  doubt- 
less a  memorial  to  some  tribal  dandy,  or  a  message  of  fellow  feeling 
to  the  lurid  youth  of  the  Occident. 

In  lieu  of  the  medallion  design  there  often  appear  scroll-like  or 
shield  devices,  with  some  conventional  floral  bits  interspersed.  These 
are  distributed  sparsely  upon  a  field  of  richest  blue  or  red.  The  col- 
ors are  dark  and  indescribably  rich,  the  small  scrolls,  for  example,  b& 
ing  laid  in  deep  leaf-green,  true  madder  red,  and  a  peculiar  blue  sev- 
eral shades  lighter  than  the  ground,  and  so  lustrous  that  it  seems  to 
be  woven  in  silk.  In  this  same  blue  the  main  border  ground  is  often 
laid.  This  border  is  broad,  and  usually  carries  a  graceful  design  of 
the  Herati  order.  Sometimes  where  the  field  is  of  dark  blue,  the 
border  ground  is  a  correspondingly  deep  red,  and  the  figures  in  light 
shades,  with  pronounced  effects  in  yellow  and  old  ivory,  which  give 
brightness  to  the  whole  expanse.  These  also  appear  in  the  central 
field. 

Warp,  weft  and  pile  of  the  Sarakhs  are  of  wool,  and  the  mate- 
rial with  which  the  best  of  them  are  piled  is  as  fine  as  in  many  of  the 

19J 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

costly  Persian  carpets.  As  in  the  Kazaks,  one  end  is  often  finished 
with  a  fringe,  while  at  the  other  the  warp  is  turned,  twisted  and 
woven  back  upon  itself  with  the  weft,  to  form  a  broad,  heavy  selvage. 
The  sides  are  overcast.     The  knot  is  Ghiordes. 

Koultuk, — There  are  made  in  the  many  small  villages  of  the  dis- 
trict lying  between  Gehrous  and  Zenjan,  partly  in  the  province  of 
Ardelan  and  partly  in  the  northwest  corner  of  Irak  Ajemi,  a  multi- 
tude of  small  runners  of  various  sorts,  including  even  some  of  the 
Herez  type.  They  are  worked  on  a  cotton  warp  and  with  woollen 
weft  and  in  other  respects  follow  the  Kurd  models.  They  are  heavy, 
but  not  of  the  "  Lule  "  weight.  The  knot  is  Turkish.  One  end  has 
a  plain  selvage ;  the  other  a  selvage  and  loose  ends.  The  new  dyes 
are  used  in  most  of  these  and  the  coloring  of  course  is  not  of  the 
best.  A  dealer  in  Zenjan,  on  the  road  from  Tabriz  to  Teheran, 
began  collecting  these  pieces,  adding  to  them  such  as  came  to  hand 
of  the  Kara  Dagh  and  other  weavings,  and  marketing  the  whole 
as  Koultuk  or  Zenjan.  The  extreme  diversity  noticeable  in  these 
shipments  forbade  their  taking  rank  as  a  distinct  class.  Constan- 
tinople rug  men,  reassorting  the  bales,  cast  each  piece  into  the  lot 
which  it  resembled  most  closely,  and  abandoned,  so  far  as  American 
invoices  were  concerned,  both  Koultuk  and  Zenjan  ;  so  neither  of  the 
names  has  ever  found  a  prominent  place  among  the  shop  titles 
employed  in  this  country.  The  "  variety  "  is  in  reality  merely  a  hodge- 
podge of  the  same  sort  as  the  so-called  "  Guendje,"  in  which  are  com- 
prised the  odds  and  ends  of  all  the  Caucasian  and  Mosul  weavings. 

Souj-Bulak. — Another  variety  of  rugs  offered  in  considerable 
numbers  in  Persian  markets  comes  from  the  neighborhood  of  Souj- 
Bulak,  the  old  Kurdish  capital  on  the  border,  some  distance  to  the 
south  of  Tabriz  and  Lake  Urumieh.  The  population  of  the  district 
is  overwhelmingly  Kurd,  and  the  rugs  are  in  all  the  essentials  Kurd- 
ish, with  slight  local  variations.     The  yarns  are  doubled,  which  makes 

193 


^^ 


tf-d  or 


.qo-:Joil- 


.  >V£DV/    flJiff 

.iIT     .Vjil'j. 
rIj>iJOid  aiiff 


r  of  Irak  Ajemi, 
•uding  even  some 
n  a  cotton  wnrr>  and  with 
Plate  XIX.    Old  Feraghan  SEDjADEHney  an 

6.8  X  4  One  end 

Property  of  the  Author  The  new   *;' 

An  excellent  example  of  eighteenth  and  nineteenth  century  work  in  the 
Feraghan  district.  The  Herati,  or  "  fish  "  pattern  in  very  compact  form,  with 
the  corner  spaces  distinctly  set  out  and  a  species  of  Herat  border.  In  the  nar- 
rower stripes  will  be  observed  the  pear  pattern,  something  after  the  manner  of 
the  older  Khorassans.  The  broad  border  has  the  characteristic  light  green 
ground,  which  appears  in  most  of  the  better  and  older  rugs  of  the  pure  Ferag- 
han weave.  This  green  wears  down  quickly  and  leaves  the  other  colors  in 
relief.  The  pile  yarns  are  trimmed  closely  in  the  beginning,  and  long  wear 
has  brought  them  very  near  to  the  foundations,  but  the  design  is  still  clear  and 
the  general  color  effect  is  of  almost  a  heliotrope  quality. 

.  so  aciUier  oi 

among  the  shop  ti 

in  reality  merely  s  ' 

endje,"in  which  aic  ' 

af  rugs  ^....„v^   ,,.    v....^. ...... 

m  the  neighborhood  of  ?^ 
•  order  s'-ni"  distance 


are  doubled,  which  m;; 


PERSIAN 

the  fabrics  very  compact.  The  wool  is  of  the  best  and  the  pile  soft 
and  pleasant  to  the  touch,  but  by  reason  of  the  close  texture  it  stands 
straight  instead  of  flattening  like  that  of  the  Kazaks.  All  the  pat- 
terns are  Kurdish  and  the  colors  are  dark — chiefly  red,  blue  and 
brown.  While  strong  and  serviceable,  the  Souj-Bulak  rugs  are  far 
from  maintaining  the  standard  of  the  first-class  Kurd  products. 

Two  rows  at  the  back  of  the  rug  indicate  the  single  Ghiordes 
knot  and  the  number  of  these  to  the  inch  measuring  vertically  is 
greater  than  when  measured  on  the  weft.  The  average  is  7-8  by 
lOi  I.     The  finishings  are  of  the  Kurdish  character. 

FERAGHAN  FABRICS 

Mainly  for  the  purpose  of  condensation  and  in  order  to  bring 
the  matter  into  easier  focus,  I  have  chosen  to  consider  the  Feraghan 
rug  district  as  comprising  practically  all  the  central  province  of  Irak 
Ajemi,  extending  from  the  eastern  slope  of  the  Bakhtiyaris  to  the 
great  salt  deserts  or  "  Death  Valleys  "  of  Persia  on  the  east,  and  from 
the  Caspian  Sea  southward  to  the  grim  left  shoulder  of  the  Kuh 
Banan.  The  adjustment  is  somewhat  arbitrary,  and  considered  from 
a  geographical  standpoint  would  be  erroneous,  for  the  Feraghan  dis- 
trict is  clearly  defined  by  the  maps  and  does  not  include  the  localities 
where  some  of  the  rugs  here  classified  as  of  the  Feraghan  group  are 
manufactured.  There  will  be  imparted  to  the  Feraghan  by  this  ar- 
rangement a  great  diversity,  but  in  reality  not  greater  than  the  small 
territory  enjoys,  since  the  actual  Feraghan  industry  has  become 
wholly  commercial,  and  under  direction  of  European  managers  the 
weavers  of  tne  province  now  turn  out  copies  of  almost  every  known 
fabric  as  well  as  the  original  variety  which  made  it  famous. 

But  aside  from  this,  viewed  as  a  whole  its  fabrics  show,  under 
the  present  classification,  more  nearly  than  those  of  any  other  section, 
all  the  features  of  design  and  color  common  to  Persian  carpets, 
whether  recen".  or  traditional,  though  in  all  save  one  variety  they  are 

193 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

lacking  in  the  peculiar  ornamental  character  which  abides  in  the  Kir- 
man  and  Tabriz.  In  examples  which  will  be  noted,  it  is  plain  that 
some  of  the  group  have  to  a  certain  extent  been  made  in  imitation  of 
the  medallion  rugs.  Where  they  have  been  the  expression  solely  of 
the  Persian  genius  they  preserve  more  of  apparent  spontaneity  ;  there 
is  more  of  nature  in  them,  more  likeness  to  the  carpeting  of  blossoms 
upon  which,  in  imagination  if  not  in  fact,  the  Persian  treads  his  whole 
life  through. 

There  is  close  resemblance  between  some  of  these  carpets  of 
Feraghan  and  the  fine  fabrics  of  Sehna,  which,  as  has  already  been 
said,  are,  in  spite  of  proximity  to  the  Turkish  towns  of  Bijar,  Hama- 
dan  and  Tabriz,  fairly  loyal  to  Iranian  tenets  and  fashion  in  art.  The 
difference  between  the  several  products  of  this  comprehensive  group 
lies  mainly  in  the  designs  adopted  and  the  quality  of  material  used. 

As  floor  coverings  they  are  of  about  equal  value.  Exception, 
however,  must  be  made  to  the  common  grades  of  Feraghan  proper. 
This  variety  marks  in  Persia,  as  the  low  class  Ghiordes  does  in  Turkey, 
the  maximum  of  deterioration  from  an  artistic  standpoint.  With 
quantity  alone  in  view  and  with  an  ancient  reputation  to  trade  upon, 
quality,  for  which  its  name  was  for  centuries  honored,  seems  to  have 
been  lost  sight  of  for  a  time. 

Feraghan  Proper. — The  saving  clause  in  whatever  may  be  said 
of  modern  Feraghan  rugs  must  be  that  until  lately  they  have  retained 
the  typical  patterns  and  colors,  but  it  requires  some  imagination 
to  form  from  some  of  the  Feraghans  of  to-day  an  idea  of  what 
their  prototypes  were.  More  wholesome,  well  wrought  and  alto- 
gether likeable  floor  coverings  than  the  old-time  Feraghans  it  would 
be  hard  to  find.  To  the  Persian  they  are  the  acme  of  carpeting. 
The  Herat!  design,  which  has  been  held  almost  a  distinctive  mark  of 
the  Feraghan,  has  been,  on  the  whole,  quite  steadfastly  adhered  to 
in  one  form  or  another — possibly  because   familiarity  enables  the 

194 


PERSIAN 

weavers  to  produce  it  quickly.  In  the  better  examples  it  is  repeated 
upon  a  ground  usually  blue,  with  rich  but  modest  variations  of  color. 
The  borders,  well  balanced  in  width  against  the  body  of  the  rug,  are 
wrought  after  the  common  plan  of  alternating  rosettes  and  palmettes 
upon  a  waving  vine.  The  borders  have  more  white  and  pale  tints, 
and  more  pronounced  blues  and  red  than  the  body.  The  ground  of 
the  main  stripe  is  often  laid  in  some  shade  of  green.  The  very  old 
pieces  leave  no  room  for  doubt  that  this  diaper  and  the  same  general 
character  have  long  been  distinctive  of  Feraghan  carpets. 

The  other  design  most  often  found  in  old  and  finely  wrought 
Feraghans,  is  the  Guli  Hinnai,  or  Flower  of  the  Henna,  to  which 
reference  has  already  been  made  in  the  chapter  on  Design.  It  is 
more  ornate  than  the  Herati,  and  when  well  woven  and  in  the  antique 
coloring  makes  a  much  richer  and  more  effective  carpet. 

Within  the  past  year  or  two  the  Sultanabad  firm,  which  is  para- 
mount in  Feraghan,  and  some  weavers  in  other  sections,  have  begun 
reproducing  this  design  in  some  excellent  rugs,  though  chiefly  in 
small  sizes.  For  some  time  hitherto  the  Guli  Hinnai  had  been  much 
used  in  large,  slipshod  form,  in  coarse  carpets. 

Many  modern  Feraghans,  borrowing  from  all  sources  whatever 
will  fill  space,  have  a  huge  medallion  in  the  central  field,  which,  with 
the  small  corner  spaces,  has  usually  an  ivory  or  white  ground.  The 
medallion  is  broken  by  three  more  or  less  geometrical  diamond- 
shaped  devices,  two  in  blue,  supporting  a  central  and  larger  one  in 
red.  All  of  the  central  field  not  taken  up  by  these  labor-savers  is 
filled  with  the  recognized  small  Herat  pattern  on  a  blue  ground. 
This  design  for  Feraghan  has  been  largely  adopted  by  the  manufac- 
turers of  Persian  carpets  in  America  as  well  as  in  the  factory  towns 
of  Persia  and  Turkey.  Its  borders  sometimes  preserve  vaguely 
the  old  conventional  Herat  or  Persian  ideas,  but  more  often  the  main 
stripe  is  made  up  of  separate  flower  devices.     Running  patterns  are 

19S 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

retained  in  the  small  border  stripes.  Some  of  the  latter  Feraghans 
have  wandered  so  far  from  their  traditional  designs  as  to  use,  for  the 
central  medallion,  geometrical  shapes  somewhat  like  those  of  the  Cau- 
cn«ians,  or  the  singular  medallion  with  plain  ground  so  common  in 
ae  Hamadans. 

The  true  Feraghans  are  worked  in  the  Sehna  knot.  The  weft 
is  of  cotton,  which  in  the  moderns  has  deteriorated  commensurately 
with  the  rest  of  the  fabrics.  Their  pile  is  of  wool.  Instead  of  from 
ninety  to  one  hundred  and  fifty  knots  to  the  square  inch,  moderns 
sometimes  run  as  low  as  thirty. 

Sultanabad. — In  its  practical  phase  the  whole  enormous  rug  in- 
dustry of  the  province  of  Feraghan  itself  and  much  of  that  of  the 
surrounding  territory  centres  in  Sultanabad.  It  is  the  carpet  head- 
quarters of  the  European  firm  which  controls  so  large  a  part  of  the 
weaving  business  of  this  section  of  Persia.  Aside  from  the  old  de- 
signs and  the  modifications  of  them  to  which  reference  has  been  made 
above,  the  Sultanabad  carpets  are  the  conceits  of  European  and 
American  designers,  working,  in  a  way,  on  the  old  Persian  models, 
but  changing  the  colors  and  supplying  such  additions  as  seem  likely 
to  meet  capricious  demands.  The  regulation  grades  are  heavy 
carpets  of  the  same  sizes  as  those  made  in  Ghiordes  and  Oushak,  but 
rather  superior  to  those  in  quality.  In  the  American  markets  the 
Sultanabads  are  often  called  *'  Savalans,"  after  the  range  of  moun- 
tains which  towers  to  the  north  of  the  district.  In  the  wholesale 
trade  they  are  classed  as  *'  Extra  Modern  Persians."  The  designs  of 
this  order  are  known  to  the  weavers  as  lereh  Lemsa.  The  ground- 
work is  usually  of  a  pale  yellowish  cast,  and  the  patterns,  vines,  flowers 
and  the  like,  are  boldly  drawn,  in  stable  shades  of  red,  blue  and  green. 
The  general  effect  is  brilliant  and  the  carpets  have  on  the  whole  given 
satisfaction.  Harsh  criticism  has  been  passed  on  the  Sultanabad  en- 
terprise, in  various  quarters,   on  the  ground  that  it  had  urged  the 

196 


PERSIAN 

weavers  to  hasty  work  and  by  confining  them  strictly  to  the  designs 
placed  in  their  hands  had  substituted  European  ideas  for  the  "  spon- 
taneous originality  "  which  in  times  past  has  been  the  greatest  charm 
of  all  Oriental  art.  On  the  other  hand  it  may  be,  and  is,  contended 
that  the  Persian  populace,  having  little  or  no  means  to  prosecute  the 
work  of  carpet-making,  would  have  been  forced  to  forget  its  craft  en- 
tirely if  some  competent  agency  had  not  intervened  to  supply  the  ne- 
cessary materials  and  support.  In  this  measure,  at  least,  concerns  of 
this  sort  have  been  conservative  forces  and  the  employment  which  they 
have  afforded  has  without  question  kept  life  in  the  body  of  many  a 
poverty-stricken  Persian  who  otherwise  would  long  ago  have  surren- 
dered in  the  struggle  for  the  wretched  bread  of  the  country. 

Saraband. — It  has  been  commonly  believed  that  the  name  Sara- 
band, as  applied  to  floor  coverings,  had  some  connection  with  the 
Saraband  dance.  In  a  way  it  has.  The  Saraband  rugs  are  made  in 
the  district  of  Sarawan,  lying  immediately  to  the  south  of  Feraghan. 
It  is  easy  to  understand  how  the  Mediterranean  dealers,  familiar 
with  the  graceful  terpsichorean  function  known  as  Saraband,  inter- 
preted the  Persian  Sarawan  into  something  that  was  sure  to  strike 
gratefully  upon  Western  ears. 

In  the  Sarawan  district  the  tereh  Mir,  so  called  from  the  village 
where  it  is  said  to  have  originated,  is  the  almost  universal  design, 
and  outside  influences  have  not  availed  to  wean  the  weavers  from  it. 
Artisans  in  other  localities  have  copied  the  Mir  Saraband,  changing 
the  borders  or  coloration  to  suit  their  fancy.  Even  the  Herez  pea- 
sants have  taken  to  making  large  kali  in  this  design,  but  after  their 
own  textile  methods. 

The  pure  Saraband  rugs  are  probably  as  clearly  defined  and 
adhere  as  closely  to  type  as  any  class  of  carpets  in  Persia.  Almost 
without  exception  the  field  is  filled  with  the  pear  pattern. 

In  its  arrangement  in  the  Saraband  alternate  rows  will  in  most 

197 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

instances  be  found  to  have  the  stems  turned  in  opposite  directions, 
which  adds  more  than  might  be  believed  to  the  balanced  effect  of  the 
design.  The  colors  are  quiet  but  rich.  The  deepest  Persian  red  and 
blue  are  used  for  ground-colors,  one  almost  invariably  appearing  in 
the  border  when  the  other  is  used  for  the  field.  Sometimes  the  main 
ground  is  white  or  ivory  color.  In  such  cases  the  pear  pattern  ap- 
pears in  red  or  blue. 

A  feature  of  the  Saraband,  which  adds  much  to  its  attractiveness 
and  decorum,  is  the  multiplication  of  the  border  stripes.  These  are 
all  narrow,  but  of  different  widths,  and  sometimes  there  are  as  many 
as  a  dozen  of  them.  The  undulating  vine  is  always  present,  but  in 
very  small  form,  and  little  rectilinear  flowers  are  thrown  in  in  place  of 
the  recognized  lotus  forms.  The  narrowness  of  these  border  stripes 
could  scarcely  be  defended  if  the  design  in  the  body  of  the  rug  were 
other  than  what  it  is.  If  it  were  pretentious  and  coordinate  the 
multiplicity  of  small  stripes  would  be  beneath  it  in  dignity,  and  the 
imposing  Herat  or  Persian  borders  would  be  in  order.  But  the 
adaptation  of  the  border  value  to  the  small  pear  shapes  which  make 
up  the  filling  shows  these  Sarawan  weavers  to  possess  a  sense  of 
balance  and  harmony  which  could  scarcely  be  improved. 

The  adoption  of  geometrical  elements  into  the  borders  is  only 
one  of  the  several  evidences  in  the  Saraband  of  influence  other  than 
Persian.  Another  is  what  has  been  called  the  reciprocal  trefoil, 
referred  to  as  a  feature  of  the  "  Polish  "  carpets  and  having  a  place  in 
certain  Caucasian  fabrics.  It  is  found  in  avast  number  of  Sarabands, 
and  the  reciprocal  saw  tooth  is  perhaps  even  more  common. 

The  genuine  Mir  Sarabands  are  tied  in  the  Sehna  knot.  It  is 
not  unusual  to  find  the  date  of  manufacture  worked  in  them. 

There  is  common  in  the  Levantine  marts,  and  frequently  found 
in  rug  stores  in  this  country,  a  fabric  known  to  the  Turkish  dealers 
as  Selvile.     It  is  nothing  more  or  less  than  a  coarser  form  of  Sara* 

198 


PERSIAN 

band,  made  by  the  mountaineers  and  copied  by  the  weavers  in  other 
sections.  It  is  tied  with  the  Ghiordes  knot,  and  is  of  about  the  qual- 
ity of  the  upper  middle  class  Shirvan,  which  in  some  of  the  border 
patterns  it  much  resembles.  It  presents  the  pear  pattern  in  large, 
loose  form,  and  the  field  is  overweighted  by  the  number  and  solidity  of 
its  border  stripes.  It  has  a  two-thread  overcasting  at  the  sides,  made 
with  the  colored  weft.  The  narrow  web  at  the  ends  is  of  the  same 
color.  On  one  end  there  is  a  rather  long  knotted  fringe  of  the  warp 
which  is  of  fine,  grayish  wool.  On  the  other  end  the  loop  of  the  warp 
through  which  the  rod  has  passed  is  allowed  to  twist  and  left  for 
finishing.  Rugs  of  this  description  are  sold  in  this  country  under 
whatever  name  happens  to  be  most  convenient  at  the  time. 

Hamadan. — In  the  shadows  of  Mount  Elwund,  in  and  around 
the  city  of  Hamadan  (ancient  Ecbatana,  burial-place  of  Esther  and 
Mordecai),  a  great  rug  industry  is  carried  on.  Most  of  the  fabrics 
made  here  have,  until  lately,  followed  an  established  theory  in  design, 
and  to  a  large  extent  in  color  as  well.  Shortly  before  the  year  igcx), 
so  great  was  the  success  of  the  Hamadan  weavings,  looms  were  set 
up  in  many  nearby  neighborhoods  where  before  no  rug-making  was 
done.  In  these  the  designs  of  other  parts  were  well  imitated,  and 
the  object  was  to  substitute  regular  "factory"  output  for  the  old 
production  which  was  wholly  characteristic  of  Hamadan.  Cause 
for  this  may  be  found  in  the  decline  in  popularity  which  the  typical 
rugs  of  the  district  have  suffered.  There  is  little  difiiculty  in  distin- 
guishing the  Hamadan  carpet  from  all  other  weavings,  unless  it  be 
from  others  made  in  imitation  of  them  at  the  time  when  their  vogue 
was  greatest. 

A  considerable  quantity  of  filik,  as  well  as  camel's-hair  in  the 
natural  color,  is  used  in  the  pile.  The  prevailing  colors  are  red,  blue 
and  yellow,  all  in  strong  values,  which  gain  a  lustre  from  the  materi- 
als.    The  real  camel's-hair  antique  examples  are  very  rare  now,  and 

199 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

vast  prices  are  demanded  for  them.  The  moderns,  while  rougher, 
and  harsher  in  color  than  the  older  rugs,  are  honest  and  service- 
able fabrics. 

They  hav  -snerally  a  plain  color,  in  most  cases  ivory-white  or 
some  shade  of  camel's-hair,  for  the  groundwork  of  the  central  field ; 
if  not  this,  then  a  fret  diaper  in  camel's-hair  shade  upon  a  back- 
ground of  ivory-white  or  cream  color.  There  is  a  medallion  of  some 
pretension  in  the  middle,  and  the  corner  spaces  are  set  off  to  accord 
with  It.  These  divisions  are  very  positive,  but  the  outlines  are  shapely. 
The  flower  patterns  with  which  the  inclosed  areas  are  adorned,  are 
laid  in  a  rather  light  blue  and  striking  shades  of  red.  Around  the 
outside  of  the  rug  is  the  tevehr,  or  broad  band  of  natural  camel's-hair, 
of  a  tint  like  that  used  in  the  body,  or  of  wool  dyed  in  some  pale 
ivory  or  primrose  tint.  Sometimes  a  stripe  of  rich  red  is  thrown  in 
just  inside  this  band,  fetching  up  against  the  border  stripes,  which 
are  adorned  with  rectilinear  forms  of  the  vine  and  flower  pattern. 

There  are  also  some  peculiarly  compact  diaper  patterns  used  in 
the  Hamadans,  which  are  seldom  found  in  any  other  fabrics.  The 
most  common  of  these  is  known  as  Ina  Dm — or  the  "  Mirror"  de- 
sign. It  is  complex  and  leaves  little  if  any  of  the  ground  space  visi- 
ble. The  essential  outline  of  the  design  is  at  first  glance  indistinct. 
It  is  involved  with  the  accessories  in  such  a  way  as  to  obscure  it. 
The  colors,  dull  red,  blue  and  yellow,  are  so  intermingled  as  to  give 
the  whole  design  a  dull  pinkish  tinge,  which  comports  well  with  the 
plain  band  of  camel's-hair  with  which  it  is  enclosed  at  the  sides  and 
ends.  The  general  color  effects  of  the  typical  Hamadans  are  shown 
in  Plate  XIV  of  the  illustrations. 

Among  the  principal  tributaries  of  the  Hamadan  market  is  the 
Kara-Geuz  field,  lying  to  the  east.  It  has  long  been  a  weaving 
section  and  the  workmanship  is  fairly  well  up  to  the  Hamadan  stan- 
dards, solid  and  substantial.     In  order  to  supply  a  demand  made  upon 

900 


bi'::-*w;» .  ,^;/.\;^.. 


o 


?.no: 


-andcii  iOf   thttn.      i  ne 


■\  medallion  of  sor 

: shape: 
>rned,  s- 
ound  !• 
Plate  XX.    Shiraz  Rug  ael's-b. 

Loaned  by  Mr.  RegitialdH,. Biilky  ,^^^  ^^  j^  thrown   : 

This  piece,  though  made  for  practical  use,  is  fully  up  to  the  best  traditions 
of  Shiraz  weaving.  The  three  principal  colors,  rose,  ivory  and  blue,  are  equal 
to  those  found  in  any  part  of  Persia,  even  of  old  time.  It  is  woven  of  the 
Niris  wool,  extremely  soft  and  glossy,  but  the  body  of  the  fabric,  thanks  to 
stout  foundations,  is  most  substantial.  All  the  characteristic  finishings  of 
Shiraz  are  here. 


^^  ^.  ...rv^rts  well  with  v.  ■■ 

'sA.^^pA    ;,^    fTifi  sides  ii'     \ 

:ire  shov  ■! 

narket 

^n  a  weav    v 
e  Hamadan  *^?  *n- 
I  n  order  to  ;  iTnand  mad 


g 

Z 

< 

< 

Z 
Ul 


PERSIAN 

the  Tabriz,  Tiflis  and  Constantinople  dealers,  runners  from  twenty- 
five  to  thirty-five  feet  long  are  now  made  in  the  Kara-Geuz.  They 
are  in  all  sorts  of  designs,  and  in  some  of  them  the  anilines  are 
rampant. 

The  old  Kara-Geuz  runners  resembled  in  many  respects  certain 
rugs  of  Kurdistan.  They  have  been  sold  in  America  under  the  name 
of  Iran,  a  never-failing  retreat  for  the  vendor  who  is  in  doubt  about 
the  precise  origin  of  a  Persian  rug.  The  warp  and  weft  in  most  cases 
are  of  cotton  and  the  sides  are  overcast.  The  texture  constitutes  the 
chief  difference  between  them  and  the  Kurdistans. 

On  the  road  leading  south  from  Hamadan  is  a  group  of  villages, 
chief  of  which  are  Oustri-Nan  and  Burujird,  where  some  sterling  rugs 
are  woven  for  the  Hamadan  trade.  They  are  compactly  made ;  the 
ground  of  the  border  is  white,  with  some  conventional  device  remote- 
ly derived  from  the  pear  set  at  short  intervals  transversely  of  the  bor- 
der, and  with  the  apex  of  the  cone  pointing  inward.  The  Saraband 
pattern  is  used  for  the  field,  and  but  for  the  borders  and  texture  the 
rugs  might  be  taken  for  Saraband.  They  have  cotton  warp  and 
weft,  the  latter  dyed.  They  are  overcast  with  colored  wool.  There 
is  a  solid  finish  at  one  end  and  a  fringe  at  the  other.  The  knot  is 
Turkish  and  the  average  from  seventy-five  to  ninety  to  the  square 
inch. 

A  new  and  important  branch  of  the  Hamadan  system  is  Bibik- 
abad,  where  the  industry  has  recently  been  begun  upon  a  consider- 
able scale.  The  designs  are  diverse,  the  texture  somewhat  looser  than 
that  of  the  Kara-Geuz  rugs  and  the  colors,  up  to  the  time  of  the 
Shah's  edict,  not  all  that  could  be  wished  for. 

Teheran-Ispahan-Saruk. — Nothing  could  illustrate  better  the 
way  market-places  throughout  the  Orient  give  their  names  to  com. 
modities  brought  to  them  for  sale,  than  the  survival  of  these  names 
in  rug  nomenclature.     Just  how  long  a  time  has  elapsed  since  carpets 

90I 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

in  any  number  were  made  in  either  the  present  or  former  capital  of 
Persia,  it  would  be  difficult  to  determine,  but  there  is  scarcely  a  rug 
shop  of  note  which  has  not  Teheran  and  Ispahan  rugs  to  offer  to  the 
customer.  In  the  Tabriz  bazaars  the  dealer  has  no  idea  what  is 
meant  by  Teheran  and  Ispahan.  And  yet  the  types,  as  represented 
in  America,  are  fairly  well  defined.  After  careful  inquiry,  and  exami- 
nation of  rugs  sold  in  Persia,  I  believe  that  all  the  fabrics  called 
Teheran  and  Ispahan  are  the  products  of  the  village  of  Saruk  in  the 
Feraghan  district,  and,  for  the  rest,  vagrant  pieces  which  come 
from  the  looms  of  Kirman,  by  the  way  of  Bushire  or  the  Indian 
ports,  to  England.  In  Kirman,  longer,  perhaps,  than  in  any  other 
place  in  Persia,  the  ability  to  weave  well  the  pure  floral  and  realistic 
designs  has  endured.  A  similar  form  of  craftsmanship  still  exists  in 
Saruk ;  the  old  designs  of  this  order  are  also  copied  faithfully  in  the 
great  factories  of  Tabriz. 

In  these  "Teheran"  and  "Ispahan"  fabrics  the  national  genius 
for  rich  realistic  floral  decoration  maintains  very  clear  expression. 
There  is  in  them  a  profusion  that  makes  them  known  instantly.  The 
freedom  with  which  the  designers  have  gone  abroad  in  the  whole 
realm  of  nature  in  quest  of  forms  has  resulted  in  a  prodigality  of  or- 
namentation which  only  halts  short  of  redundancy.  All  the  forms 
and  hues  of  trees  and  plant  life,  birds,  animals,  fishes,  clouds,  ara- 
besques, thus  broad  is  the  field  in  which  the  designer  of  these  carpets 
counts  it  his  privilege  to  gather  materials.  With  such  a  range  it  is 
plainly  impossible  to  suggest  anything  nearly  approaching  a  common 
design.     It  is  the  very  richness  and  multiformity  which  are  typical. 

There  can  be  little  doubt  that  many  of  the  designs  seen  to-day 
were  devised  in  another  century,  and  that  they  have  been  copied  with 
slight  variation,  generation  after  generation.  The  best  of  them  re- 
flect an  artistic  spontaneity  which  does  not  abide  in  the  atmosphere 
of  Persia  or  any  other  part  of  the  Orient  in  our  time.     It  is  likely 

303 


PERSIAN 

that  such  designs  of  this  class  as  impress  us  as  being  meagre  and  in- 
ept have  undergone  the  greater  changes  and  express  more  truthfully 
the  present  tendency. 

In  most  of  the  "  Ispahan  "  rugs  there  are  to  be  found,  prominent 
among  the  forms  upon  the  dark  red  or  blue  field,  the  clearly  marked 
cones  of  the  cypress  tree.  Its  peculiar  dull  green,  in  such  perfect 
complement  to  the  value  of  the  red  which  is  usually  dominant,  lends 
a  sombre  suggestion,  a  note  somewhat  funereal  in  the  midst  of  all  the 
vernal  brightness.  It  is  strikingly  demonstrative  of  the  artistic  mel- 
ancholy which  pervades  the  Persian  mind.  This  cypress,  indirectly 
an  emblem  of  mourning,  but  really  conveying,  as  all  trees  do,  the  idea 
of  perfect  and  renewed  life,  distinguishes  the  great  carpets  made  for 
use  in  the  mosques  and  the  grave  carpets,  once  so  much  used  in  Per- 
sia. Additional  evidence  of  their  character  is  afforded,  especially  in 
those  of  Ispahan,  so  called,  by  the  presence  of  a  willow  with  solemnly 
trailing  branches — a  combination  recognized  by  Persian  weavers 
under  the  name  of  Terek  Asshur.  The  cypress  and  willow,  carved 
upon  headstones  in  the  old  graveyards  of  our  own  land,  may  perhaps 
be  a  survival  of  this  design.  The  prayer  rugs  of  this  variety  often 
have  the  willow  in  the  centre,  and  a  succession  of  cypresses  along  the 
sides  of  the  field,  with  two  of  them  so  inclined  as  to  meet  at  the  top, 
forming  the  prayer  arch. 

Some  of  the  "  Teheran  "  rugs  show  a  more  formal  tendency  in  de- 
sign and  while  retaining  the  local  richness  of  color  have  their  fields 
covered  with  small  pear  patterns  of  the  elongated  forms  found  in  Per- 
sian and  Indian  shawls.  Sometimes  the  effect  is  made  diagonal,  when 
the  small  patterns  are  used,  by  alternating  the  colors. 

In  the  borders  the  old  pattern  of  vines  carrying  rosettes  at  regu- 
lar intervals,  is  common  ;   so  in  the  "  Ispahans"  is  the  Herat  border.  ^ 
In  many  "  Teherans  "  the  realistic  flowers  take  on  a  formal  decorative 
character,  and  the  spaces  between  them  are  occupied  by  the  long 

ao3 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

medallion  forms  known  as  "cartouches."  In  rugs  of  the  highest  class 
these  cartouches  often  contain,  after  the  Moorish  fashion  as  preserved 
in  the  decoration  of  the  Alhambra,  verses  from  the  national  poets, 
appropriate  to  the  designs,  or — though  religious  scruples  make  this 
rare — passages  from  the  Koran. 

The  designs  here  described  have  recently  been  made  in  the  fac- 
tory towns  in  very  large,  almost  whole-carpet  sizes — another  indication 
of  the  change  which  has  come  over  the  weaving  art  of  the  East.  Rugs 
are  now  looked  upon  as  carpetings — and  little  more.  But  these  big, 
new  pieces  have  retained  the  old  patterns  and  coloring,  and  to  a  remark- 
able degree  the  fineness  of  stitch.  There  was  for  some  time  a  scarcity 
of  rugs  of  this  order  which  showed  any  sign  of  age.  As  manufacture 
for  Eastern  markets  progressed,  Constantinople  became  well  supplied 
with  the  profuse  floral  pieces,  and  now  their  importation  is  very  great. 

A  word  further  should  be  said  concerning  the  village  of  Saruk 
and  its  weaving.  It  is  situated  in  the  Feraghan  district  proper,  but 
its  rug-makers  for  a  long  time  refused  to  come  under  the  protection 
of  the  European  firms.  They  produced  only  a  limited  number  of 
pieces  in  a  year,  pieces  of  a  fineness  to  put  Tabriz  to  the  blush. 
Nearly  all  these  were  taken  to  Teheran  and  immediately  bought  up  by 
wealthy  Persians,  who  paid  for  them  a  far  higher  price  than  they  would 
command  if  offered  for  sale  in  the  open  market  The  interesting 
feature  of  it  is  that  these  same  Persian  magnates,  who  might  reason- 
ably be  expected  to  stickle  for  carpets  dyed  with  vegetable  tingents, 
never  demur  at  the  loose  colors  which  until  lately  have  marked  the 
Saruks.  This  contradiction  seems  to  be  universal  throughout  the 
kingdom.  I  visited  the  home  of  a  Persian  merchant,  and  upon 
arrival,  was  ushered  into  a  reception  room  where  we  had  tea  Persian 
fashion,  that  is,  sitting  on  the  floor.  In  the  apartment  there  were 
spread  half  a  dozen  or  more  sedjadeh  pieces — the  floral  panels  of  Kir- 
man.     From  all  of  them  the  color  had  faded.     In  some  only  misty 

204 


PERSIAN 

shadows  remained  of  the  designs,  ghosts  of  what — and  not  so  very 
long  ago — had  been  riotous  masses  of  color.  The  master  of  the 
house,  with  Persian  quickness,  saw  that  his  carpets  had  attracted  notice. 
"I  know  what  you  are  thinking,"  he  said.  "You  are  thinking  it  is 
strange  that  a  Persian  who  can  afford  anything  else  should  content 
himself  with  carpets  dyed  with  anilines.  The  truth  is,  I  like  them. 
The  softer  the  tone  of  the  carpet,  the  less  aware  you  are  of  the  colors 
in  it,  the  more  restful  it  is.  These  loose  dyes  fade  quickly  under  the 
sun,  and  then  you  have — that.     It  is  beautiful." 

And  so  the  fine,  flower-strewn  rugs  of  Saruk,  with  their  question- 
able dyestuffs,  are  sold  for  three  prices,  before  the  warp  of  them  is 
stretched  upon  the  loom. 

''Jooshaghan"  or  Djushagkan. — Among  the  best  carpets  in  Persia 
are  the  soft-toned  but  hard-woven  fabrics  which  are  called  Joo- 
shaghan.  The  name  is  another  of  those  which  are  brought  in  for 
every  emergency.  The  genuine  carpets  of  this  variety  have  not  been 
largely  sold  in  America,  since  the  district  where  they  are  made  is 
within  easier  reach  of  the  Persian  Gulf  ports  than  the  markets  of  the 
North.  The  fabrics  are  therefore  better  known  in  England  than 
here. 

The  Djushaghan  orDshushekan  district  is  some  distance  south  of 
Feraghan.  Its  weavers,  like  those  of  Feraghan,  have  shown  a  de- 
cided loyalty  to  the  local  design,  which,  when  in  its  purity  and 
well  woven  and  colored,  is  one  of  the  most  pleasing  to  be  found  in 
Persia.  In  general  effect  it  resembles  the  Saraband,  but  the  design 
has  not  the  definition  which  is  afforded  by  even  the  most  delicate 
rendition  of  the  pear  pattern.  It  has  something  of  likeness  to  the 
"  Mirror"  pattern  found  in  the  Hamadans  in  point  of  color,  and  also 
in  the  fact  that  the  main  features  do  not  obtrude  themselves  upon 
notice.  The  foundation  of  it  is  Arabic,  and  the  outline,  like  so  many 
of  the  Arabic  traceries,  is  continuous,  passing  on  from  one  figure  to 

SOS 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

another.  The  principal  element  is  a  cross,  the  ends  of  which,  instead 
of  being  square,  are  angular,  and  the  lines  forming  this  angle  inter- 
sect each  other,  and  are  carried  along  to  form  points  of  adjoining 
crosses.  This,  it  will  be  seen,  leaves  an  eight-pointed  star  space  be- 
tween every  four  crosses.  This  space  is  filled  with  the  subordinate 
elements  of  the  design,  and  the  centre  and  arms  of  the  cross  itself  are 
likewise  adorned  with  conventional  floral  figures — four-petaled  flow- 
ers and  a  diagonal  arrangement  of  leaves.  The  border  ground  is  of 
much  lighter  red  than  the  body  of  the  carpet,  and  the  patterns  are 
small  floral  shapes  in  dull  colors,  relieving  a  geometrical  key  shape 
similar  in  conception  to  the  X-shape  in  the  Shiraz  rugs.  The  entire 
fabric  is  usually  in  a  soft  tone  of  red. 

The  warp  is  wool,  and  there  is  a  hard,  thin,  narrow  web  at  the 
end.  The  sides  are  overcast,  and  the  knot  is  Turkish.  There  are 
from  nine  to  twelve  knots  to  the  inch  measuring  horizontally  and 
eight  to  eleven  perpendicularly. 

KIRMANIEH  FABRICS 

All  the  rugs  sent  from  the  southern  part  of  Persia  between  the 
Shat-el-Arab  and  the  Persian  Gulf  on  the  west,  and  the  plains  of 
Seistan  and  Beluchistan  on  the  east,  may  be  classed  as  Kirmanieh 
fabrics.  They  are  made  chiefly  by  the  nomadic  Karmanian  tribes, 
some  of  them  descendants  of  the  old  Parsees,  though  the  Turkoman 
elements  contribute  largely  to  the  product  of  the  district,  and  their 
fabrics  are  thorough  counterparts  of  some  of  those  still  found  in  the 
Caucasus.  The  excellent  carpets  made  by  the  people  of  the  villages 
throughout  Laristan  are  included  under  the  head  of  Kirmanieh. 

The  honesty  of  these  weavings  has  hitherto  brought  them  great 
popularity,  and  though  signs  of  demoralization  are  visible,  remoteness 
from  the  avenues  of  commerce  and  travel  makes  it  seem  likely  that 
some  time  will  elapse  before  they  can  come  wholly  under  the  influence 
which  has  utterly  changed  so  many  classes  of  Eastern  carpets.     An 

206 


PERSIAN 

English  firm,  however,  has  established  an  agency  at  Bushire  on  the 
Gulf  coast  and  another  at  Bassorah,  for  the  collection  of  carpets  from 
this  territory.  Their  collectors  journey  to  up-country  towns,  hire  a 
khan  or  building  of  some  sort,  and  send  out  word  into  the  surround- 
ing hamlets  and  countryside  that  they  are  there  to  buy.  The  heads 
of  weaving  families  bring  in  their  whole  year's  product  in  response  to 
this  notice,  and  thus  a  thoroughgoing  market  system  will  ultimately 
be  built  up.  The  rugs  can  be  got  to  Bender  Abbas  or  Bushire, 
and  thence  shipped  to  England  or  Constantinople. 

The  materials  used  in  the  best  of  the  Kirmanieh  fabrics — the 
Kirman  proper  and  the  high-class  Shiraz — are  taken  from  the  flocks 
which  herd  on  the  shores  of  the  salt  lake  Niris. 

Kirman. — American  rug  dealers  have  never  had  very  intimate 
acquaintance  with  the  rugs  of  Kirman,  capital  of  the  southernmost 
Persian  province.  In  the  early  days  of  rug  importation  to  this 
country  Kirman,  like  other  and  even  less  remote  parts  of  Persia,  was 
little  known.  The  European  travelers  who  had  visited  it  were  few. 
Those  entering  Persia  from  the  south  disembark  at  Bender  Abbas  or 
Bushire,  go  to  Shiraz  and  thence  directly  North,  to  Ispahan,  leaving 
Yezd,  Kirman  and  the  desert  far  on  their  right.  Kirman's  commun- 
ication is  chiefly  with  the  East.  Even  to-day  it  stands  out  of  the 
beaten  path  of  travel,  and  the  cities  of  the  North,  which  count  Shiraz 
as  neighbor,  though  not  a  very  near  one,  still  look  upon  Kirman  as 
far  away. 

This  explains,  in  a  measure,  the  confusion  which  has  always  exist- 
ed in  regard  to  the  character  of  the  Kirman  carpets,  which  hitherto 
have  come  in  limited  numbers  to  this  country,  though  in  London  they 
have  enjoyed  renown.  In  the  section  devoted  to  Kurd  rugs  reference 
has  been  made  to  the  current  belief  that  Kermanshah,  in  the  moun- 
tains of  Kurdistan,  was  the  birthplace  of  these  very  interesting  fab- 
rics.    This  error,  which  only  existed  outside  the  confines  of  Persia, 

ao7 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

has  been  dispelled.  After  the  Tabriz  rugs,  modeled  after  the  later 
fabrics  of  Kirman,  had  fairly  choked  the  markets,  the  Kirman  exports 
began  to  appear  in  comparative  plenty  in  Stamboul. 

The  carpet  industry  in  Kirman  is  old,  and  has  been,  if  Reclus  is 
to  be  believed,  more  tenacious  of  life  than  some  of  the  arts  which 
throve  there  in  other  times.  He  says ;  '*  Since  the  visit  of  Marco 
Polo  Kirman  has  lost  its  manufacture  of  arms,  but  its  embroideries 
and  carpets  are  always  high  prized."  The  endurance  of  textile  indus- 
try here,  when  other  arts  have  failed,  is  due,  no  doubt,  to  the  plenti- 
tude  of  unequalled  wool.  The  descriptions  given  of  the  manner  in 
which  carpet  weaving  is  carried  on  in  Kirman  show  that  it  was  done 
studiously,  and  freedom  from  contact  with  the  rest  of  the  world  served 
to  perpetuate  local  methods  and  characteristic  designs. 

In  the  book  of  Sir  F.  J.  Goldsmid,  upon  **  Eastern  Persia,"  pub- 
lished in  1876,  is  to  be  found  the  clearest  utterance  regarding  the 
carpets  of  Kirman,  an  utterance  formulated  on  the  notes  of  eye  wit- 
nesses of  the  manufacture.  It  says :  "  The  curiosities  of  Kirman 
are  the  carpet  and  shawl  manufactures.  The  former,  once  the  most  cele- 
brated in  the  East,  have  much  diminished  in  number  since  the  siege, 
from  which  date  all  the  calamities  of  Kirman.  In  the  governor's 
factory  alone  are  the  finer  qualities  produced.  The  white  wool  of  the 
Kirman  sheep,  added  perhaps  to  some  quality  of  the  water,  gives  a 
brilliancy  to  the  coloring,  unattainable  elsewhere.  In  patterns  the 
carpets  are  distinguishable  from  those  of  the  North  and  West  by  this 
purity  of  color,  and  a  greater  boldness  and  originality  of  design,  due 
probably  to  a  slighter  infusion  of  Arab  prejudice  on  the  subject  of 
the  representation  of  living  forms.  Not  only  flowers  and  trees,  but 
birds,  beasts,  landscapes  and  even  human  figures  are  found  in  Kirman 
carpets.  The  Wakil-ul-Mulk  gave  me  two  in  return  for  a  pair  of 
breech-loading  pistols  of  greater  value  that  I  presented  him  with,  and 
1  purchased  a  still  finer  one  in  the  bazaar." 

208 


PERSIAN 

This  is  supplemented  by  the  report  of  Major  Oliver  B.  St.  John, 
embodied  as  part  of  the  same  volume.  His  description  of  the  way 
in  which  the  Kirman  weaving  is  done  would  serve  almost  equally 
well  as  a  picture  of  the  work  in  the  Tabriz  factories. 

He  says  :  "  From  the  shawl  manufactory  we  went  some  little  dis- 
tance to  that  of  the  no  less  celebrated  carpets.  These  are  manufact- 
ured in  a  way  reminding  one  strongly  of  the  Gobelin  tapestry  made 
at  present,  or  rather,  before  the  war,  in  Paris.  The  looms  are 
arranged  perpendicularly,  and  the  workers  sit  behind  the  loom,  but  in 
this  case,  unlike  the  Gobelins,  they  have  the  right  side  of  the  carpet 
towards  them.  The  manufacture  of  carpets  differs  from  that  of 
shawls  in  this  particular,  that  each  carpet  has  a  painted  pattern,  designed 
and  drawn  out  by  the  master  of  the  manufactory,  which  is  pinned  to 
the  centre  of  the  carpet,  and  which  the  workers  can  consult  if  neces- 
sary, from  time  to  time.  Advantage,  however,  is  rarely  taken  of  this 
facility  of  reference,  for  the  boy  who  sits  nearest  the  pattern  reads 
out  in  a  monotonous  voice  any  information  required  concerning  it. 
The  carpets  are  made  entirely  of  cotton,  woven  by  the  fingers  into  the 
upright  web.  Their  manufacture  is  tedious  and  costly  in  the  extreme, 
but  they  are  beautifully  soft  and  durable.  The  work  is  constantly 
hammered  close  together  by  a  wooden  hammer  every  few  stitches. 
The  man  whose  manufactory  we  visited  was  said  to  be  without  a  rival 
in  Persia  either  in  the  designing  of  beautiful  rugs,  or  in  skill  in  mak- 
ing them.  We  saw  a  beautiful  carpet  that  he  was  making  for  a 
shrine  at  Meshhed,  which  was  to  cost  five  thousand  tomans,  or  two 
hundred  pounds,  being  eleven  yards  long  by  about  two  and  a  half 
broad ;  than  which  nothing  could  have  been  more  beautiful.  The 
boys  and  men  do  not  look  so  unhealthy  as  those  in  the  shawl  shops." 

The  designs  of  Kirman,  to  this  day,  are  of  the  floral  order,  but 
in  the  recent  carpets — those  which  have  been  taken  as  models  for  the 
Tabriz  rugs — the  medallion  idea  is  paramount.     The  panels  are  not 

209 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

so  hard  or  so  heavy  as  those  of  Tabriz  in  appearance  ;  the  flowers  are 
treated  with  a  light  and  natural  touch  and  with  that  appearance  of 
relief  found  scarcely  anywhere  else,  save  in  very  old  carpets  of  the 
neighboring  province  of  Khorassan.  But  in  the  older  Kirman  pieces 
— the  sort  which  one  seldom  sees  nowadays,  there  is  evidence  of 
greater  freedom,  of  individual  conceit.  An  indisputable  example  of 
this  was  found  in  a  loan  exhibition  in  the  Library  of  Pratt  Institute  in 
Brooklyn,  N.  Y.  Its  origin  was  proven  by  an  inscription  woven  in  a 
cartouche  in  its  border,  **  Amli  Kirman,  made  at  Kirman,"  and  then, 
*•  Karim,"  doubtless  the  name  of  the  weaver.  It  was  an  old  rug  and 
the  registration  of  its  date,  which  was  also  included  in  the  inscription, 
brought  to  light  another  interesting  fact,  that  Karim,  the  weaver,  was 
not  of  the  ordinary  type  of  Mohammedan  Persians,  but  a  descendant 
of  the  ancient  Persis  or  Zoroastrian  fire  worshippers,  who  had  refuge  in 
the  city  of  Kirman.  That  city  and  Yezd  are  known  to  be  now  the 
only  places  in  Persia  where  any  considerable  colonies  remain  of  the 
Zoroastrians,  who  in  modern  Persian  are  called  Zerdusht.  Record  of 
date  in  Eastern  carpets  is  usually  made  by  the  reckoning  of  the 
Hegira,  now  inching  along  into  its  fourteenth  century.  This  rug  of 
Kirman  bore  date  of  2918.  The  solution  was  obvious,  since  this  is 
the  thirtieth  century  of  the  Zoroastrian  era.  Rough  computation 
showed  that  the  rug  was  in  the  neighborhood  of  a  hundred  years  old. 
The  pile  had  been  so  worn  away  that  it  was  dii;  ylt  to  determine  the 
knot  used.  So  Karim,  the  weaver,  had  years  ago  been  gathered  to 
his  fathers,  but  this  old  rug,  perhaps  the  meanest  of  his  handiworks, 
was  one  to  do  him  credit.  It  amuses  one  to  wonder  what  would  have 
been  the  thoughts  and  impressions  of  Karim  if  he  could  have  seen  it 
hanging  there  with  the  trader's  tag  upon  it,  and  the  strange,  "  Fer- 
enghi  "-looking  people  staring  at  it  and  looking  up  its  number  in  the 
catalogue.  It  was  listed,  by  the  way,  as  an  India  Kashmir.  And 
there  is  yet  another  story,  for  much  of  the  export  of  Kirman  is  across 

aio 


PERSIAN 

the  desert  to  the  East  and  out  of  India  by  way  of  Bombay.  It  is 
thus,  without  doubt,  that  so  many  of  the  Kirman  rugs  have  found  their 
way  to  England. 

At  any  rate,  the  rug  of  Karim  was  thus :  About  four  feet  by 
seven,  with  a  ground  of  "  soft  buff-gray."  Upon  this  were  woven  in 
rows,  transverse  and  diagonal  in  effect,  instead  of  perpendicular,  blue 
vases  full  of  roses.  They  were  like  the  flowers  of  Khorassan,  drawn 
in  perspective  and  with  the  petals  shaded.  They  seemed  to  have 
body.  There  were  long  stems  with  buds,  marvellously  made  buds, 
hanging  over  the  sides  of  the  vases,  and,  besides  these,  three  full- 
blown flowers,  upright  and  magnificent,  in  each  vase.  So  lavish  was 
this  rose  show  that  comparatively  little  of  the  ground-color  appeared. 
There  were  eighteen  of  the  vases,  all  of  exquisite  pattern,  all  with 
variations  of  the  blue  in  their  coloring,  and  some  small,  scarcely  dis- 
coverable difference  in  their  ornamentation. 

The  border  stripes  were  five,  the  middle  one  broad,  and  grounded 
in  a  yellow  so  golden  that  one  must  wonder  how  it  could  be  obtained 
in  wool.  The  narrow  stripes  immediately  adjoining  this  were  black 
of  ground,  but  so  filled  with  little  flowers  of  red  and  yellow,  and 
leaves  of  pale  green,  that  the  contrast  with  the  border  stripes  was  all 
but  done  away  with.  The  innermost  and  outermost  stripes,  again, 
were  yellow  as  gold.  All  the  stripes  were  floral  and  the  flowers  were 
chiefly  red,  with  ^.      site  offsetting  foliage  in  delicate  green  tints. 

And  the  weaver  had  wrought  some  magic  into  his  rug.  In  the 
daytime  the  reds  of  the  roses  seemed  to  lie  asleep,  to  be  dulled 
almost  to  crushed  colors  by  the  years  which  had  gone  over  them ; 
only  the  golden  yellow  of  the  borders  shone  in  the  brightness  of  day 
as  if  it  were  burnished.  Under  the  glare  of  the  lights,  when  night 
came,  the  fabric  was  transformed.  The  gold  vanished.  The  yellow 
was  almost  of  a  part  with  the  "  soft  buff-gray  "  of  the  field.  But  the 
roses  of  Karim,  with  their  wonderful  shading,  burst  into  a  mass  of 

8X1 


O  R I E  N  TA  L     RUGS 

flame.  It  was  as  if  he  had  laden  them  with  all  the  fire  his  old  Iranian 
ancestors  worshipped.    Such  was  the  true  rug  of  Kirman. 

For  all  that,  it  is  only  due  to  the  spirit  of  technical  accuracy  to 
add  that  the  old  weaver  had  used  a  two-strand  cotton  warp  and 
woollen  weft  of  a  single  strand  ;  that  the  sides  of  the  fabric  were 
overcast,  and  the  ends  finished  with  only  a  narrow  web  and  the 
white  tips  of  the  warp,  which,  across  half  of  one  end,  were  plaited 
into  little  ropes.  Karim  put  in  about  a  hundred  and  twenty  knots  of 
Kirman  wool  to  every  square  inch  of  his  rug.  May  his  soul  dwell 
forever  in  the  smile  of  Ormuzd. 

Shiraz. — Here  in  Farsistan  is  one  of  the  most  Persian  towns  in 
Persia,  for  here  during  a  dozen  centuries  the  ancient  Parsa  had  its 
capital.  Shiraz,  home  of  wine,  roses  and  nightingales,  birth-place  and 
tomb  of  Hafiz,  smiles  to-day  in  the  very  shadow  of  older  Persepolis, 
"the  courts  where  Jamshyd  gloried  and  drank  deep." 

While  Shiraz  remained  the  centre  of  government,  the  palace 
manufacture  of  carpets  to  be  given  by  the  Persian  lords  to  potentates 
of  other  countries  was  conducted  upon  a  splendid  scale,  and  the  work 
produced  was  the  finest  of  which  the  Persian  genius  was  capable. 
The  few  specimens  of  the  old  handiwork  which  remain  show  traces  of 
northern  influence,  but  their  workmanship  and  color  handling  do  not 
suffer  by  comparison  with  the  most  artistic  creations  of  old  Kirman 
and  the  later  capitals  of  Persia.  The  untutored  elements  have,  how- 
ever, so  far  prevailed  in  the  rug-weaving  of  late  years  that  the  fabrics, 
while  thoroughly  good  floor-coverings  and  attractive  to  a  degree, 
show  none  of  the  several  phases  of  artistic  advancement  which  have 
distinguished  the  weavings  of  places  farther  north,  or,  in  days  gone 
by,  of  Shiraz  itself.  The  distribution  over  a  wide  expanse  of  country 
of  the  people  who  make  the  Shiraz  rugs,  and  their  exposure  to  differ- 
ent decorative  influences  on  all  sides  have  resulted  in  a  wide  variation 
of  design  ;  but  in  most  of  these  the  same  clear,  clean  drawing  is  mani- 

2ia 


< 
H 

O 

Pi 

> 
< 


> 
c 


PERSIAN 

fest,  and  the  colors — blue  tones  seeming  to  predominate — are  bright 
and  strong,  and  have  the  merit,  even  now,  of  being  largely  vegetable. 

Numberless  Shiraz  carpets  are  found  with  the  central  field  cover- 
ed with  pear  patterns.  They  may  be  distinguished  from  the  pure 
Sarabands  without  difficulty,  since  the  Shiraz  treatment  is  on  a  rather 
larger  scale  and  more  rectilinear  than  that  found  elsewhere,  excepting 
in  a  few  Kabestans  and  some  of  the  carpets  of  Mosul.  The  whole 
field,  again,  may  be  filled  with  a  succession  of  narrow  perpendicular 
or  diagonal  stripes,  in  plain  colors,  or  adorned  with  figures,  animals, 
and  trees.  In  yet  other  examples  appear  the  rectilinear  central  figures 
of  the  Caucasians,  with  hard,  clean-cut  decoration  like  that  of 
Daghestan  and  Shemakha.  But  in  such  case  the  ground  surrounding 
the  central  figure  invariably  carries  rich,  bold  flowers,  or  the  pear 
or  tree  figures. 

The  borders  are  almost  always  of  generous  width,  and  richly 
ornamented.  Some  of  the  flower  patterns  are  quite  large  and  gay, 
but  still  conventional.  The  waving  vine  is  poorly,  but  almost  invari- 
ably illustrated  in  the  narrow  stripes  by  a  typical  pattern,  consisting 
of  two  full,  oval-shaped  flowers,  in  alternate  red  and  blue.  Another 
favorite  small  stripe  is  made  of  X-shaped  figures,  with  diamonds  in 
the  spaces  between  them.  The  Shiraz  displays  unusual  features  of 
finish.  At  the  ends  of  some  rugs,  for  example,  between  the  pile  and 
the  narrow  cloth  web,  the  weaver  makes  a  heavy  but  very  narrow  sel- 
vage, by  weaving  together  in  a  coarse  check  pattern,  in  the  Sumak 
stitch,  red,  white  and  blue  yarn,  in  thick  strands  of  each  color.  Some- 
thing resembling  this  is  found  in  certain  of  the  Turkoman  rugs  and 
in  many  Kurdistans,  where  it  takes  the  form  of  stripes  of  colored 
yarn  embroidered  across  the  narrow  web  at  the  ends.  The  sides 
of  the  Shiraz  are  usually  overcast,  sometimes  in  one  color,  some- 
times two  or  three.  Additional  lengths  of  all  the  yarns  used  in 
the  piling  are  occasionally  laid  along  the  sides  and  bound  in  by  the 

•13 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

overcasting.  This  does  the  double  service  of  strengthening  the  edges 
and  making  them  as  thick  as  the  piled  part.  In  some  rugs  an  orna- 
mental use  is  also  made  of  this  binding.  At  intervals  of  from  twelve 
to  fourteen  inches,  loops  of  these  added  strands  are  left  outside  the 
overcasting,  and  then  cut  so  as  to  form  a  series  of  particolored  tufts 
along  both  sides  of  the  rug.  The  effect  is  very  odd.  The  foundation 
threads  are  of  wool,  fine  and  white,  or  in  coarse,  colored  grades, 
according  to  the  rug's  quality.  Shiraz  carpets  are  made  as  large  as 
nine  by  twelve,  but  such  sizes  are  rare.  The  small  pieces  include 
many  saddle  covers,  in  the  making  of  which  the  nomads  of  Farsistan 
excel. 

Most  singular,  perhaps,  among  the  Shiraz  fabrics  which  reach 
America  are  certain  rugs  having  a  field  of  plain  color,  and  for  borders 
successive  three-  or  four-inch  stripes  of  several  colors,  all  without  ves- 
tige of  a  design.  They  are  about  four  and  one-half  by  seven  feet, 
and  have  on  an  average  eighteen  or  twenty  knots  to  the  square  inch. 
The  paucity  of  stitches  does  not  indicate  flimsiness  of  texture,  as 
might  be  imagined,  for  after  each  row  of  knots  there  are  six  or  eight 
threads  of  dyed  weft,  causing  the  pile,  which  is  long,  to  lie  flat.  The 
wool  is  extremely  fine  and  soft.  These  are  nothing  more  than  "com- 
forters," made  to  be  used  as  coverings,  but  the  genius  of  trade  has 
converted  them  into  carpets.  They  have  the  Shiraz  peculiarities  of 
finish,  the  checked  colored  selvage  at  the  ends,  and  tufts  of  yarn  adorn- 
ing the  overcasting  at  the  sides. 

It  will  be  well  to  recall  here  the  fact  that  Shirvans,  of  the 
Caucasian  fabrics,  are  frequently  offered  as  Shiraz.  The  true  Shiraz 
rugs  may  be  known  almost  invariably  by  the  small  checked  selvage 
at  the  ends.  They  are  worked  in  the  Ghiordes  knot,  which  makes 
the  task  of  distinguishing  them  from  some  Caucasians  a  difficult  one 
where  the  patterns  are  alike. 

Niris, — These  rugs  are  made   by  the   hillmen   in  the  uplands 

«I4 


PERSIAN 

around  the  salt  lake  Niris,  In  Laristan.  A  city  of  similar  name  is 
near  by.  The  fabrics  show  many  marks  of  relationship  with  the 
modern  Shiraz,  especially  the  checked  selvage  at  the  ends,  and 
though  usually  rougher  than  the  Shiraz,  excel  them  in  some  respects 
as  floor-coverings.  They  are  never  as  closely  woven  as  the  finest  of 
Shiraz  products,  but  on  the  whole  are  stronger  and  more  durable. 
The  wool  of  the  sheep  grown  hereabouts  is  unsurpassed.  The  best 
of  it  is  used  by  the  Niris  weavers  for  piling  their  rugs.  Both  warp 
and  weft  are  of  stout,  well  made  woollen  yarn. 

Madder  red  is  the  prevailing  color.  The  designs  vary,  though 
not  to  so  great  an  extent  as  in  the  Shiraz.  In  some  Niris  rugs  there 
is  a  well  wrought  centre-piece,  surrounded  by  a  wide  space  in  plain 
color,  and  corners  elaborately  woven.  In  some  an  all-over  design  is 
employed  for  the  field,  showing  a  pronounced  stripe  effect,  one  per- 
pendicular row  of  odd  geometrical  figures  alternating  with  a  row  of 
stiff  floral  forms.  The  borders  are  quite  elaborately  woven.  In 
these,  as  in  the  Shiraz,  the  barber-pole  stripe  of  the  Caucasians  occurs, 
but  in  both  cases  shows  several  strong,  contrasting  colors  instead  of 
simple  alternation  of  red  and  white,  as  found  in  the  Caucasian  forms. 
The  Niris  are  also  worked  in  the  Ghiordes  knot. 

These  rugs  are  one  of  several  varieties  which  have  long  been 
grouped  together  by  English  rug  men  under  the  name  of  Laristan. 
The  peculiar  geometrical  figures  mentioned  as  occurring  in  the  field 
are  souvenirs  of  the  Mongols,  who  overran  these  parts,  and  whose 
posterity  still  remain  in  force  in  some  localities.  Some  of  the  designs 
are  clearly  Tartarian,  and  the  fabrics  seem  more  like  some  product  of 
Turkestan  than  of  southern  Persia. 

Mecca. — One  of  the  pet  delusions  of  rug  purchasers,  which  has 
for  years  been  industriously  fostered  by  the  trade,  is  that  there  exists, 
for  commerce,  such  a  thing  as  a  "  Mecca  "  rug,  and  that  it  can  be 
bought  with   all   its   sanctity   upon   it,  in    shops   in    this    country. 

315 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

"  Mecca,"  as  a  name  for  a  rug,  tells  nothing  positive  concerning  the 
locality  of  manufacture,  and  usually  nothing  but  untruth  in  any  regard. 
"  But,"  a  New  York  dealer  said,  "  you  must  have  something  which 
you  can  tell  them  is  a  Mecca." 

There  journey  to  the  holy  city  of  the  Moslems,  each  year,  more 
than  half  a  million  Mussulmans,  bound  upon  pilgrimage.  They  come 
from  all  parts  of  the  vast  territories  of  which  Abdul  Hamid  II.  is 
spiritual,  if  not  temporal,  ruler ;  from  Morocco  and  the  Barbary  coasts, 
from  the  South,  from  India,  from  Persia  and  Afghanistan,  an  endless 
procession  moves  to  display  its  faith  at  the  Kaaba.  Through  Con- 
stantinople, by  boat  from  Batoum,  one  hundred  thousand  of  these 
devotees  pass  from  the  Trans-Caucasus,  Turkestan  and  the  north  of 
Persia  alone.  All  of  this  multitude  bring  offerings  proportionate  to 
their  store,  to  be  laid  upon  the  shrine.  Jewels,  shawls,  scarfs, 
armour,  furs,  perfumes — everything  of  value  is  accepted,  and  the  accu- 
mulation creates  an  admirable  stock  in  trade  for  the  mercenary  mol- 
lahs,  whose  happy  function  it  is  to  fix  the  rates  of  sacrifice.  This 
consecrated  gentry  drives  a  thriving  trade  in  textiles,  jewelry,  and 
bric-^-brac,  and  the  carpet  export  from  Mecca  is  enormous,  and  hete- 
rogeneous in  proportion.' 

'  All  the  rugs  and  other  commodities  carried  by  these  pilgrims  upon  their  journey  are  not  in  the 
nature  of  religious  sacrifices.  The  Prophet  left  them  this  thoughtful  paragraph  in  his  message  :  "It 
shall  be  no  crime  in  you  if  ye  shall  seek  an  increase  from  your  Lord  by  trading  during  the  pilgrimage." 
The  Prophet's  understanding  of  his  people,  past,  present,  and  to  come,  was  intimate  and  acute.  That 
it  was  based  upon  experience  and  practical  test  rather  than  pure  inspiration,  is  strongly  suggested  by 
the  first  set  of  tenets  which  he  established,  and  which  later  were  much  modified  to  meet  the  require- 
ments of  the  Mussulman  case.     Among  them  are  these  : 

1 .  Do  unto  another  as  thou  wouldst  that  he  should  do  linto  thee. 

2.  Deal  not  unjustly  with  others,  and  thou  shalt  not  be  dealt  with  unjustly.  If  there  be  any 
difficulty  of  paying  a  debt,  let  the  creditor  wait  until  it  be  easier  for  him  to  do  it ;  but  if  one  remit  in 
alms  it  will  be  better  for  him. 

3.  O  merchants,  falsehood  and  deception  are  apt  to  prevail  in  traffic.  He  who  sells  a  defective 
thing,  concealing  its  defects,  will  provoke  the  anger  of  God  and  the  curses  of  the  angels. 

4.  Take  not  advantage  of  the  necessities  of  another  to  buy  things  at  a  sacrifice  ;  rather  relieve 
his  indigence. 

There  are  commandments  here  which,  conscientiously  kept,  would  alter  the  whole  complexios 
of  the  Eastern  mg  trade,  were  that  trade  in  the  hands  of  Moslems,  which  it  is  not. 

316 


PERSIAN 

As  a  rule,  the  rugs  purchased  from  the  mollahs,  who  bring  them 
down  to  Jiddah — since  no  infidel  foot  is  permitted  to  enter  the  con- 
fines of  the  Holy  City — are  of  good  quality,  for  a  faithful  Moslem 
would  scarcely  offer  an  unworthy  gift  to  his  Deity;  but  they  are  of  every 
sort  that  the  Orient  sun  shines  upon.  The  greater  number  are 
Shiraz.  To  such  an  extent  have  these  been  wont  to  predominate 
that  a  certain  order  of  Shiraz  sedjadeh  of  a  blue  cast,  and  about  five 
feet  wide  by  seven  feet  long,  came  to  be  known  in  the  trade  as 
"  Mecca  "  rugs. 

This  was  the  doing  of  the  English  dealers,  who,  having  received 
shipments  direct  from  Jiddah,  had  noticed  the  predominance  of  the 
Shiraz  type,  and  so  called  that  type  Mecca.  The  maintenance 
among  American  rug  sellers  of  the  belief  that  these  are  really  Mecca 
rugs  is  primarily  due  to  the  fact  that  until  fifteen  years  ago  only  a 
very  few  buyers  for  American  houses  had  ever  gone  to  Constanti- 
nople to  secure  carpets.  The  rest,  instead,  had  bought  from  the  im- 
porting firms  in  London,  and  taken  their  terminology  with  the  goods. 

Nearly  all  the  carpets  left  by  the  pilgrims,  and  thousands  with 
which  no  pilgrim  has  ever  had  aught  to  do,  are  sent  from  Jiddah  up 
through  the  Suez  Canal  to  Cairo,  to  be  sold  to  tourists.  Others  are 
carried  to  England,  and  an  infinitely  small  number  to  Constantinople. 
Of  late  years,  so  great  has  grown  the  business  of  the  Mecca  priests, 
thrifty  captains  of  sailing  vessels  and  tramp  steamers  plying  in 
the  Persian  Gulf  pick  up  at  small  prices  what  rugs  they  can  in  sea- 
port towns,  and  as  they  come  out  through  the  Red  Sea  on  the  way 
westward,  drop  them  at  Jiddah,  and  sometimes  turn  a  pretty  penny 
thereby.  This,  doubtless,  accounts  for  the  prevalence  of  the  Shiraz 
type. 

One  thing  is  certain,  that  since  the  great  majority  of  American 
merchants  do  not  go  to  Cairo,  but  to  Stamboul  and  Smyrna  for  their 
rugs,  the  actual  number  of  Mecca  relics  of  the  textile  sort  which  find 

ai7 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

their  way  to  this  country  is  almost  wholly  confined  to  the  private 
purchases  made  by  American  idlers  about  the  Delta  of  the  Nile. 
So  greedily  are  the  rugs  picked  up  there,  that  consignments  are  sent 
from  Smyrna  and  Constantinople  to  be  peddled  in  Cairo  as  sacred 
things  from  Mecca  or  furnishings  from  Egyptian  palaces. 

KHORASSAN  FABRICS 

Sterling  carpets,  some  of  which  possess  much  artistic  merit,  come 
from  this  far  eastern  province  of  Persia,  which  even  now  extends 
from  the  borders  of  Irak  Ajemi,  in  Central  Persia,  to  Afghanistan, 
and  from  the  Turkoman  boundaries  of  Asiatic  Russia,  southward  to 
the  province  of  Kirman.  Most  of  the  western  portion  of  Khorassan 
is  desert,  in  the  scattered  oases  of  which  only  small  villages  are  found. 
The  greater  part  of  the  weaving  is  done  in  the  hill  country,  along  the 
northern  and  eastern  borders.  Fragments  of  many  races  populate 
the  province — Iranians,  Arabs,  Turkomans,  Kurds,  and  what  not — 
and  the  fabrics  therefore  are  of  many  sorts.  The  Iranian  element  is 
for  the  most  part  sedentary,  and  has  assimilated  many  of  the  Arabs  and 
Kurds.  The  Tartar  tribes  are  wanderers,  as  they  have  ever  been. 
The  Afghans  and  Baluches  who  roam  in  numbers  along  the  eastern 
and  southeastern  confines  are  robbers  to  the  manner  born,  and  prone 
to  violence. 

The  best  varieties  of  Khorassan  fabrics  show  something  of  the 
same  opulence  in  design  which  is  found  in  old  Ispahan  and  Teheran 
carpets,  though  with  more  of  the  treatment  of  the  Kirman  rug  previ- 
ously described.  The  works  of  the  nomad  classes  are  devoid  of  fine- 
ness, but  like  those  of  similar  tribes  in  the  Caucasus  and  Asia  Minor 
are  rich  in  bold  effects,  and  durable  beyond  belief.  In  Khorassan 
both  the  upright  and  horizontal  looms  are  used,  also  both  methods  of 
knotting. 

Khorassan  Proper. — The  realism  which  marks  certain  carpets  of 
the  Feraghan  group  is  fairly  outdone  in  many  of  the  proper  Khoras- 

ai8 


PERSIAN 

sans.  There  is,  perhaps,  not  so  much  of  poetic  feeling  apparent,  but 
the  floral  designs  are  more  interesting  for  the  reason  that  passably 
successful  effort  is  made  to  portray  them  in  perspective.  In  draw- 
ing and  coloring  the  floral  masses  with  which  the  grounds  are  covered 
in  some  of  the  more  pretentious  Khorassans  suggest  European  treat- 
ment. The  largest  and  most  difficult  forms  are  undertaken,  not  only 
without  much  concession  to  Oriental  decorative  convention,  but  with 
evident  intent  to  depict  them  as  growing  out  of  the  ground.  As 
compared  with  the  flowers  in  the  Teheran  and  Ispahan  rugs,  these 
are  as  exotics  to  the  exuberant  growths  of  the  field.  In  brilliancy  of 
color  and  general  treatment  they  resemble  somewhat  the  Kirmans ; 
but  even  where  the  central  medallion  is  used  the  **  painted  panel " 
appearance  of  the  Tabriz  fabrics  is  absent. 

In  some  rugs  lavish  use  is  made  of  animal  figures,  birds  and 
humans.  They  are  all  most  brilliant  in  coloring  and  are  drawn  with 
much  skill  though  in  rather  bad  proportion.  They  are  not  repre- 
sented in  motion,  as  is  customary  in  the  Teheran  and  Ispahan  fabrics, 
but  in  the  most  photographic  and  everlasting  of  poses.  A  favorite 
device  in  these  creations  is  the  Persian  heraldic  emblem,  a  lion,  sword 
in  hand,  with  the  great  sun  rising  at  his  back.  The  geographical 
location  of  Khorassan  and  its  history  go  far  toward  explaining  the 
prevalence  of  many  of  the  features  in  design.  That  part  of  the  prov- 
ince in  which  the  rug-making  is  almost  wholly  carried  on  lies  in  the 
main  track  of  travel  between  Teheran  and  the  East.  Its  cities  have 
been  for  centuries  the  religious  centres  of  Mohammedan  Persia,  al- 
though they  have  been  taken  and  occupied  at  intervals  by  Mongol 
invaders.  Nishapur,  most  important  of  these  during  the  Middle 
Ages,  and  under  one  dynasty  the  capital,  was  the  home  of  Omar 
Khayyam  and  other  learned  men  whose  writings  have  survived  to  ouf 
era  and  found  translation  into  other  languages.  Thus,  in  close  touch, 
with  China,   and  yet  a  home  of  Persian  culture,  and  withal  famous 

219 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

for  the  industrial  skill  of  its  people,  this  one  city  alone  must  have 
had  much  to  do  with  the  establishment  of  the  high  type  which  pre- 
vails in  the  best  of  the  Khorassan  carpets  even  now. 

It  would  seem,  however,  that  for  a  long  time  the  superlative 
carpets  of  Khorassan  had  been  made  farther  to  the  south.  Bellew  in 
his  book,  "  From  the  Indus  to  the  Tigris,"  says  : 

"  Birjand,  the  modern  capital  of  the  district  of  Ghayn,  or  Cayn, 
an  open  town  of  about  two  thousand  houses,  ...  is  the  centre 
of  a  considerable  trade  with  Kandahar  and  Herat  on  the  one  side, 
and  Kirman,  Yezd  and  Teheran  on  the  other.  It  is  also  the  seat  of 
the  carpet  manufacture  for  which  this  district  has  been  celebrated 
from  of  old.  These  carpets  are  called  kalin,  and  are  of  very  superior 
workmanship,  and  of  beautiful  designs,  in  which  the  colors  are 
blended  with  wonderful  harmony,  and  incomparable  good  effect.  The 
best  kinds  fetch  very  high  prices,  and  are  all  bespoke  by  agents  for 
nobles  and  the  chiefs  of  the  country.  The  colors  are  of  such  delicate 
shades,  and  the  patterns  are  so  elaborate  and  tasteful,  and  the  nap 
is  so  exquisitely  smooth  and  soft,  that  the  carpets  are  only  fit  for  use 
in  the  divans  of  Oriental  houses,  where  shoes  are  left  without  the 
threshold.  The  best  kinds  are  manufactured  in  the  villages  around, 
and  those  turned  out  from  the  looms  of  Duroshkt  Nozad  enjoy  a  pre- 
eminent reputation  for  excellence.     .     .     . 

"  Sihdih,  as  the  name  implies,  is  a  collection  of  three  villages  on 
the  plain  to  which  they  give  their  name.  Only  one  of  these  is  now 
inhabited,  the  other  two  being  in  ruins.  Very  superior  carpets  are 
manufactured  here,  and  they  seem  to  fetch  also  very  superior  prices, 
to  judge  from  those  asked  of  us  for  some  specimens  we  had 
selected.     .     .     . 

"  Ghayn  exports  its  silks  mostly  to  Kirman  raw,  but  a  good  deal 
is  consumed  at  home  in  the  manufacture  of  some  inferior  fabrics  for 
the  local  markets.     The  carpets  known  by  the  name  of  this  town  are 

zao 


PERSIAN 

not  made  here,  but  in  the  villages  of  the  southern  division  of  this 
district." 

The  genuine  Khorassan  is  not  however,  confined  to  large, 
showy  designs.  All  of  the  more  minute  patterns  in  vogue  among 
the  artisans  of  the  other  districts  of  Persia  are  made  use  of  by  the 
people  of  the  eastern  province.  The  pear,  the  fish  pattern,  and  the 
conventionalized  floral  devices  recognized  as  belonging  to  the 
Persian  decoration  are  frequent.  In  their  use  of  the  pear,  the 
Khorassan  weavers  have  devised  a  complex  pattern  of  their  own, 
which,  though  it  has  been  adopted  into  other  families,  is  looked 
upon  as  the  property  of  the  inventor.  Two  small  pears  in  light  color 
rest  their  narrow  ends,  or  tops,  upon  a  larger  one,  at  right  angles,  so 
as  to  form  a  cross,  the  arms  of  which  lie  diagonally  to  the  field  of  the 
carpet,  and  the  repetition  of  the  pattern  makes  of  the  small,  light- 
colored  pears  a  pronounced  diagonal  stripe  throughout  the  entire 
area.  The  large,  dark  red  pears  are  so  arranged  that  their  stripe  is 
broken  at  regular  intervals.  At  these  points  of  fracture  two  of 
the  large  pears  are  placed  side  by  side  and  a  new  stripe  is  begun. 
The  smaller  pear  figures  are  jewelled  with  tiny  patterns  in  bright  color. 
A  recurring  perpendicular  stripe  is  made  by  yet  other  and  longer  pear 
shapes,  placed  vertically  between  the  cross  patterns.  The  blue  of  the 
ground,  showing  between  these  groups,  itself  forms  a  horizontal 
stripe,  and  the  effect  of  the  whole  is  rich  and  striking. 

Sometimes  the  medallion  is  used,  always  covered  with  a  skilfully 
arranged  design  in  small  figures.  A  pronounced  waving  vine  is 
usually  found  in  the  main  stripe  of  the  border,  drawn  in  white  on  a 
ground  of  dark  red.  Frequently,  as  a  substitute  for  the  rosettes, 
palmettes,  and  lotus  buds  common  in  Herati  design,  the  pear  groups 
are  used.  The  narrow  borders  repeat  the  undulating  effect,  some- 
times in  two  vines  on  a  blue  field,  or  in  some  mixed  pattern  on  a 
lighter  ground.     Where  the  body  is  filled  with  the  great,  rich  flower 

Ml 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

designs  before  mentioned  the  border  usually  presents  a  consistently 
large  pattern  composed  of  the  established  Assyrian  elements. 

The  knots  of  the  old  Khorassans  are  closely  woven.  The  com- 
pactness which  this  insures  makes  the  rug  lie  firmly,  even  on  a  highly 
polished  floor,  a  virtue  which  looser  fabrics  have  not.  In  length  of 
pile  the  Khorassans  vary,  but  in  almost  all  lengths,  even  in  some  of 
the  more  closely  trimmed  examples,  there  is  a  peculiar  appearance  of 
surface,  similar  to  that  of  rugs  which  have  undergone  wear,  and  in 
which  the  corrosive  effect  of  certain  dyes  has  begun  to  be  apparent 
It  is  most  evident  in  pieces  which  have  large  patterns,  and  in  which  it 
is  not  necessary  to  bring  out  minute  points  of  color.  This  uneven 
clipping  adds  to  the  softness  given  by  the  fine  wool  with  which  the 
rugs  are  napped.  It  gives  to  a  carpet  which  has  from  a  hundred  and 
twenty-five  to  a  hundred  and  fifty  knots  to  the  square  inch,  and  in  its 
foundations  is  excessively  solid,  the  appearance  of  being  fleece  to  the 
foot.  This  same  peculiarity  occurs  in  some  varieties  of  antique  India 
rugs. 

Through  ignorance,  probably,  vendors  often  sell  old  Feraghans 
for  the  fine-patterned  Khorassan.  The  Khorassan  dyes  have  hither- 
to been  to  a  laudable  extent  vegetable.  Lately  a  new  line  of  pro- 
ducts has  been  brought  to  this  country,  woven  in  the  Feraghan 
pattern,  but  upon  a  red  ground  instead  of  blue,  as  is  the  custom  in 
the  real  Feraghans.  The  foundations  are  cotton,  but  the  weaving  is 
compact  and  careful,  better,  in  fact,  than  most  of  the  modern  proper 
Feraghans.  The  pile  is  not  finished  like  the  Feraghans,  but  is  trim- 
med unevenly,  after  the  Khorassan  fashion.  The  dyes  in  these  new 
fabrics  leave  much  to  be  desired. 

Meshhed. — This,  the  capital  of  Khorassan,  was  once  almost 
wholly  a  city  of  worship  ;  it  holds  the  shrines  of  Imam  Riza  and 
Caliph  Haroun  al  Raschid.  It  lies  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  prov- 
ince, and  for  centuries  has  been  the  objective  point  of  Mussulman 

3sa 


PERSIAN 

pilgrimages  from  all  over  Asia,  particularly  by  the  Persians  and  others 
of  the  Shiite  sect  whose  saints  are  entombed  there.  Thousands 
whose  scant  worldly  store  did  not  warrant  them  in  making  the  jour- 
ney to  Mecca  have  contented  themselves  and  no  doubt  demonstrated 
their  fidelity  satisfactorily,  by  accomplishing  the  devotional  trip  to 
Meshhed.'  It  is  really  the  most  central  place  in  Asia,  a  veritable 
hub,  from  which  great  highways,. like  the  spokes  of  a  wheel,  run  out 
in  all  directions.  More  or  less  weaving,  some  of  it  of  the  highest 
merit,  has  always  been  done  in  and  about  the  city.  Many  rugs  were 
brought,  too,  by  the  pilgrims  as  offerings,  and  a  vast  trade  in  textiles 
sprang  up.  Little  by  little  Meshhed  lost  its  religious  tone.  Its  situa- 
tion made  it  a  perfect  emporium,  a  natural  commercial  centre.  Its 
wonderful  road  system,  by  which  it  can  be  directly  reached  from  any 
part  of  Asia,  has  been  utilized  more  and  more  every  year  by  caravans, 
until  now  it  is  one  of  the  greatest  marts  in  all  the  East. 

The  rugs  vended  here  are  among  the  best  that  the  Khorassan 
district  knows.  Traditionally  they  are  rich  and  lustrous  beyond 
measure.  All  the  opulence  of  color  and  perfection  of  floral  and  ani- 
mal design  that  distinguishes  the  pure  Khorassan  is  found  in  the  rugs 
which  bear  the  name  of  the  Shiite  Mecca.  The  chief  features  of  the 
antiques  are  preserved,  but  the  more  modern  fabrics,  while  they  hold 
high  rank  even  among  the  Persian  loom  works,  have  sacrificed  much 
of  artistic  finish  to  strength  and  durability,  and  are  now  almost  as 
substantial  as  the  Herati  or  even  the  Kurdistan  Sarakhs.  They 
present  as  patterns  the  great  cone  or  pear  shapes,  in  larger  form 
perhaps  than  any  other  rug.     In  the  border  these  take  the  long  form 

'  How  great  a  multitude  of  rugs  came  into  the  possession  of  the  moUaht  is  indicated  by  the 
statement  of  Dr.  Bellew.  He  describes  the  vast  graveyard  at  Meshhed  to  which,  from  all  parts  of 
Persia  people  brought  the  bones  of  their  kinsfolk  to  be  buried.  "  Prior  to  the  famine,"  he  says,  "  these 
interments  amounted  to  forty  thousand  annually.  After  the  great  national  disaster  poverty  caused  a 
widespread  neglect  of  the  custom,  and  the  number  fell  to  something  like  twelve  thousand.  It  has 
never  returned  to  its  former  maximum  since  Meshhed,  of  late  years,  has  taken  on  the  character  of  a 
commercial  centre." 

233 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

common  to  India  and  Kashmir;  they  are  placed  transversely  and 
often  alternated  with  the  crossed  arrangements  described  as  a  feature 
of  the  proper  Khorassans.  The  designs  in  the  most  pretentious 
examples  include  also  the  animal  forms,  set  in  luminous  colors  upon 
the  brightest  of  grounds.  The  pile  is  not  trimmed  in  the  uneven 
manner  of  the  other  Khorassans,  but  presents  the  smooth,  compact 
surface  common  in  the  Herat,  to  which  they  are  nearly  related.  In 
finish  of  ends  and  sides  they  follow  the  Khorassans.  They  are  worked 
in  the  Ghiordes  knot. 

Herat. — The  state  of  facts  which  has  seemed  to  warrant  the 
classification  of  the  Mosul  fabrics  with  the  Caucasian  finds  exact  du- 
plication here,  in  the  case  of  the  carpets  named  for  Herat,  the  City 
of  a  Hundred  Gardens,  which,  from  its  strategic  importance,  has 
become  famed  world-wide  as  the  "  Key  of  India."  Though  now 
outside  of  the  geographical  confines  of  the  Persian  realm,  it  bears  in- 
timate historical  relation  to  Persia,  and  its  carpets  are  allied  in  design 
and  coloring  to  the  Persian  family  of  textiles,  rather  than  to  those  of 
the  Turkoman  districts  on  the  north,  or  the  Mongolian  on  the  east. 
The  fish  pattern,  which  has  been  referred  to  as  prevailing  in  Ferag- 
han  rugs,  is  in  its  purity  known  among  experts  as  the  Herat  pattern. 
It  seems  tolerably  clear  that  it  originated  neither  in  Herat  nor  in  the 
Feraghan  district,  but  was  primarily  a  gift,  in  which  two  at  least  of 
the  older  civilizations  contributed  each  its  part.  However  that  may 
be,  the  design,  as  a  diaper  for  the  body  of  the  rug,  and  the  accompa- 
niment recognized  as  the  Herat  border  are  preserved  in  their  integ- 
rity in  the  modern  Herat  fabrics.  The  Herat  border  has  been  uti- 
lized, with  more  or  less  modification,  in  half  the  rug-making  sections 
of  the  Orient.  In  many  of  the  finest  pieces  in  the  European  collec- 
tions it  is  used  to  enclose  a  central  design  of  the  purest  Persian,  the 
distinctive  Persian  character  being  maintained,  as  one  authority 
points  out,  by  the  employment  of  (^ark  red  for  the  ground-color  of 

aa4 


AJIAN 


kcB. 


Plate  XXI.    Tekke  Prayer^JIug 


vhich  has  seemed 
Prayer,^  UG 


5.4x4 

Loaned  by  Mr.  Ralph   O.  Smith 

s   strat  portan 

'  The  octagonal  device  of  the  Turkoman  weaving  is  familiar  to  almost  every, 
one,  so  common,  in  fact,  that  it  is  reproduced  in  numberless  machine-made  fab- 
rics, the  regularity  of  the  pattern  lending  itself  particularly  well  to  mechanical 
repetition.  Equally  prevalent  in  Turkestan  is  this  design  for  the  prayer  car- 
pets. With  some  small  variation  as  to  coloring  and  border  ornamentation  it  is 
used  by  nearly  all  the  weavers  of  the  Turkoman  steppes.  The  piece  here  shown 
has  a  band  of  lighter  color  in  the  ground  at  one  end  of  the  field,  a  quite  unusual 
manifestation  among  the  Tekke  weavers,  though  frequent  enough  in  the  rugs  of 
Kurdistan  and  parts  of  Caucasia. 


he  body  of  the  nw.  and  the  ace*  ^^ 
t  border;  -A  j^  their  ...„. 

b^en  \: 


■iAT'^lV 


/f.  itT.  ^l«Il^IAJIAN  ik  c8. 


PERSIAN 

the  central  field,  and  a  corresponding  value  of  green  for  the  ground 
of  the  border,  a  combination  which  seems  to  have  enjoyed  the  high- 
est favor  among  the  Persian  masters. 

The  majority  of  Herat  rugs  adhere  religiously  to  the  old  de- 
sign, and  whatever  their  dimensions  are  in  every  essential  point,  ma- 
terials, dyeing  and  weaving,  unsurpassed  by  any  which  come  out  of 
the  East.  Aside  from  the  recognized  Herat  pattern,  almost  the  only 
other  device  used  is  the  pear  shape,  repeated  throughout  the  field 
after  the  manner  of  the  Sarabands,  save  that  the  Saraband  has  the 
hook  turned  in  opposite  directions  in  the  alternate  rows,  while  in  the 
Herati  it  is  drawn  uniformly.  This  seems  to  be  employed  only  in  the 
finest  of  the  modern  examples,  and  the  elongated,  gracefully  curved 
shape  of  the  patterns  gives  indication  of  the  close  relation  which,  by 
reason  both  of  trade  and  conquest,  has  for  centuries  existed  between 
India  and  the  Afghan  capital.  When  used  for  the  field  the  pattern 
is  often  upon  a  ground  of  cream  yellow  or  some  other  light  shade, 
though  the  usual  ground  color  is  blue.  In  the  border  which  accom- 
panies it,  in  these  instances,  the  weavers  retain  the  typical  Herat 
forms.  Although  the  fish  patterns  used  in  Feraghan  and  Herati  are 
essentially  identical,  the  latter  is  woven  in  the  Ghiordes  knot,  the 
former  in  the  Sehna. 

It  is  a  common  belief  that  the  Herat  rugs  are  woven  in  Khoras- 
san.  The  ground  for  this  is  without  doubt  the  thoroughly  Persian 
character  of  the  fabrics,  the  knot  being  the  only  point  of  variance. 
In  this  connection  it  is  important  to  know  that  the  Herati  do  not 
speak  of  their  country  as  Afghanistan,  but  always  as  Khorassan,  a 
usage  dating  back  to  the  time  when  the  Persian  sway  was  less  cir- 
cumscribed than  it  is  to-day. 

There  is  a  coarse  form  of  Herat  carpet  which  is  offered  under 
the  name  of  Aiyin,  or  Kayin. 


M5 


XII 

TURKOMAN 

FROM  the  Caspian  Sea  to  the  Chinese  frontier,  and  from  the 
Sea  of  Aral  to  Afghanistan  and  Persia,  stretches  an  immense 
territory,  comprising  thousands  on  thousands  of  square 
miles,  and  inhabited  by  numberless  rug-making  tribes. 

In  the  deserts  and  sand-hills  of  Turkestan,  both  east  and  west 
of  the  Oxus,  and  among  the  foot-hills  of  the  Hissar  and  Turkestan 
Mountains,  the  rough,  quarrelsome  Turkomans,  most  of  them  under 
Russian  rule  now,  make  rugs  which  follow  quite  closely  a  general 
type,  and  which  have  attained  a  high  degree  of  popularity  as  strong, 
well  made,  and  serviceable.  Some  of  them,  too,  are  models  of  fine- 
ness and  solidity.  The  wool  used  in  them  is  of  good  quality.  The 
lower  grades  of  wool  are  made  into  heavy  cloaks,  tent- coverings  and 
thick  felts,  all  of  which  play  a  large  part  in  the  wild,  outdoor  life  led 
by  the  Central  Asian  hordes. 

In  considering  these  Turkoman  weavings  we  encounter  again  the 
misunderstanding  which  has  arisen  in  the  case  of  so  many  rugs.  The 
great  majority  of  the  Turkoman  fabrics  are  accredited  to  Bokhara, 
and  by  that  name  are  widely  known  in  Europe  and  America.  The 
plan  adopted  in  this  volume  — of  letting  the  accredited  rug  names 
stand  for  what  they  have  stood  for  hitherto,  instead  of  inviting  the 

226 


T  U  R  K  O  M  A  N 

reader  to  learn  a  new  distribution  —  is  particularly  harassing  here, 
for  what  are  called  Bokharas  in  America  are  not  Bokharas,  and  no 
one  in  Asia,  save  the  most  case-hardened  rug  vendor,  understands 
what  an  American  means  by  "  Bokhara"  rugs.  On  the  way  up  the 
Black  Sea  I  talked  rugs  to  a  Frenchman  who  for  years  had  been 
"  expediting  "  all  sorts  of  Eastern  carpets  —  Persian,  Caucasian,  Turk- 
oman and  even  bales  from  farther  east. 

"  Do  you  have  any  Tekkes  in  America?  "  he  asked. 

I  told  him  I  had  heard  the  name  applied  to  khilims,  and  to 
some  coarse  nomad  weavings  out  of  eastern  Anatolia. 

"  Oh,  no  !  "  he  said.  "  That  is  not  the  Tekke.  You  must  see 
the  real  Tekke  of  Turkestan.  When  we  arrive  in  Russia  I  will 
show  you  some,  but  they  are  not  for  sale.  All  the  veritable  Tekkes 
are  in  private  hands,  and  no  one  will  part  with  them,  for  they  have 
become  very  rare.  Once  in  a  while  one  is  offered  for  sale,  but  the 
price  is  very,  very  high." 

When  we  reached  Batoum  I  saw  the  Tekke  —  the  "veritable 
Tekke."  If  it  were  displayed  in  a  Broadway  window,  the  rug  mer- 
chants would  declare  it  the  finest  Bokhara  they  ever  saw. 

Before  the  Trans- Caspian  railroad  was  built,  the  wild  tribesmen 
of  all  that  part  of  Turkestan,  it  seems,  always  took  their  rugs  to  Bo- 
khara for  sale.  When  they  reached  Tiflis  or  Constantinople,  which 
latter  they  did  years  ago  by  caravan  to  Trebizond,  the  rugs  bore  the 
name  of  the  Turkoman  capital  from  which  they  had  been  "expedited." 

That  name  has  become  fastened  on  them,  and  will  not  be 
changed.  Tekke  rugs,  or  their  unworthy  successors,  will  continue  to 
be  sold  as  Bokharas.  But  what  is  even  more  perplexing,  under  the 
circumstances,  is  that  the  carpets  which  are  made  in  Bokhara  itself, 
and  far  to  the  south  and  east  of  its  confines,  are  the  coarse,  Brobdig- 
nagian  forms  of  the  Turkoman  design  which  we  know  sometimes  as 
Afghans  and  sometimes  as  Khivas.      For  the  rest,  the  Samarkands 

227 


ORIENl'AL     RUGS 

and  the  Chinese  weavings  have  been  included  in  this  group,  not 
because  they  resemble  the  others  in  any  respect  (for  they  are  es- 
sentially Mongol)  but  solely  upon  geographical  grounds. 

*' Bokhara''  or  Tekke. —  In  the  whole  range  of  Eastern  fabrics 
there  is  probably  no  pattern  which  so  conclusively  identifies  a  textile 
as  does  the  hard-and-fast  division  into  squares  and  oblongs  and  the 
unvarying  octagonal  device  which  are  the  features  of  the  so-called 
Bokhara.  These  rugs,  which  are  now  found  in  almost  tiresome 
plenty,  are  made  by  the  Tekke-Turkomans  who  inhabit  the  plains  to 
the  west  of  the  Oxus,  and  who,  until  the  Russians  whipped  them 
into  something  like  civilized  procedure,  found  their  chief  delight  in 
stealing  their  fellow-men  of  all  other  races  whenever  opportunity 
offered,  and,  having  tortured  them  for  diversion,  selling  them  into 
slavery. 

The  Russian  artist  and  traveller,  Simakoff,  who  has  been  spoken 
of  elsewhere,  told  in  the  all  too  meagre  letter-press  of  his  splendid 
book  something  of  these  Turkoman  weavings.  Each  family  or  clan, 
he  said,  had  its  carpet  design,  as  one  has  a  sign  manual.  Nothing 
that  could  be  offered  could  ever  tempt  them  to  weave  any  other.^ 
Several  of  the  characteristic  tribal  designs  he  reproduced  in  his  very 
interesting  work.  The  particular  conceit  which  in  the  West  has 
come  to  be  considered  most  thoroughly  typical  of  Bokhara  is  one 
which  when  once  seen  cannot  be  forgotten.  No  matter  in  what 
minor  details  it  may  vary,  one  feature  will  proclaim  it  instantly.  The 
lines  of  demarcation  in  the  pattern  are  heavy  and  hard,  and  as  true 


'"  Types  des  dcssins  les  plus  frequents  dans  les  tapis  des  Tourkm^nes.  lis  se  distinguent  par 
la  finesse  et  le  caract^re  serre  du  tissu,  la  solidity  des  couleurs,  et  I'harmonie  reposante  des  nuances.  Ces 
dessins  sont  composes  de  figures  fantastiques,  formees  de  lignes  droites,  que  ne  rappellent  ni  des  fleurs,  ni 
des  oiseaux,  ni  d'autres  animaux.  Les  figures  rappellant  des  oiseaux  que  Ton  voit  sur  un  fond  d'octo- 
gones,  dans  le  tapis  '  a  '  ne  se  rencontrent  qu'ii  I'^tat  d'exception.  II  en  est  de  ces  dessins  comme  de 
ceux  sur  les  tapis  dtroits  ci-dessus  mentionnes  [the  narrow  strips  used  for  friezes  around  the  tent  walls]; 
chaque  famille  Tourkmine  a  son  dessin  propre,  qu'elle  travaille  et  varie,  mais  k  aucun  prix  die  ne  vou- 
drait  en  executer  un  autre." — "  L'Ari  deVAsie  Centrale,''  par  N.  Simakoff. 

228 


TURKOMAN 

as  those  of  a  checker -board.  The  arrangement  of  the  devices  on 
these  oblongs  is  also  characteristic.  A  single  figure  does  not  lie 
within  a  single  oblong,  but  on  the  intersection  of  the  lines.  Each 
quarter  of  it  is  in  one  corner  of  each  four  adjoining  oblongs.  The 
centre,  usually  filled  with  a  diamond  shape,  marks  the  actual  point 
of  intersection.  The  pattern  itself  is  an  elongated  octagon,  divided  in 
four  parts  by  the  lines  referred  to  above.  Inside  of  it  lies  a  similar 
shape,  the  diagonally  opposite  quarters  of  which  are  colored  alike, 
and  in  contrast  with  the  alternating  quarters.  For  example,  one  and 
three  will  be  of  red  and  brown,  two  and  four  of  white  and  black.  In 
the  outer  part  these  colors  are  reversed,  which  gives  balance  to  the 
pattern.  The  ground  of  the  rug  and  its  dominant  color  throughout 
is  red  —  kermes,  madder,  or  glowing  scarlet.  The  other  colors  are 
brown,  black,  blue,  white  and  sometimes  a  shade  of  orange.  All 
these  are,  however,  thoroughly  subordinated  to  the  dominant  reds. 
Some  conventional  diamond-shaped  figure  occupies  the  spaces  be- 
tween the  octagons. 

In  some  of  the  smaller  pieces  there  is  a  complex  border,  the 
stripe  effect  of  which  is  multiplied  by  many  narrow  lines  of  contrasting 
color,  arranged  after  the  fashion  of  the  Chinese  fret,  between  the 
broader  stripes,  which  carry  a  definite  pattern  contrasting  with  the 
bold  body  of  the  carpet.  The  red-and-black  effect  is  maintained,  but 
lightness  and  brightness  are  imparted  by  the  addition  of  small  areas 
of  orange  and  diminutive  fillings  of  pale  blue  and  white,  and  some- 
times, though  rarely,  of  green.  This  border,  which  has  much  of  the 
East  Indian  about  it,  is  wider  at  the  ends  than  at  the  side,  and  of  a 
more  broken  design,  usually  suggesting  some  form  of  the  tree  of  life. 

A  feature  of  many  Bokharas,  shared  by  kindred  fabrics,  is  the  web, 
sometimes  ten  or  twelve  inches  deep  on  the  ends.  It  is  a  Turkish 
device,  and  has  travelled  with  the  race.  In  color  it  is  similar  to  the 
pile  in  most  antiques;   and  through  it,  in  most  of  the  pieces,  run 

339 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

narrow  stripes,  single  or  double,  at  intervals  of  two,  three  or  four 
inches.  They  are  blue  or  black  and  white.  Instead  of  this  there 
is  sometimes  a  plain  piled  surface,  running  out  clear  to  the  small 
selvage  and  carelessly  twisted  fringe  which  finish  the  ends.  In  the 
small  moderns  the  web  is  white.  The  rugs  come  in  all  sizes,  though 
it  is  only  within  the  last  few  years  that  they  have  reached  real  carpet 
dimensions. 

The  prayer  rugs  differ  entirely  from  the  sedjadeh.  Barring  the 
borders,  there  is  little  to  indicate  that  they  are  of  the  same  variety ; 
but  in  each  the  type  is  strictly  adhered  to.  The  bold  reds  of  the 
carpets  are  usually  missing  from  the  prayer  rug,  which,  when  of  fine, 
antique  quality,  is  soft,  sedate,  but  indescribably  rich.  The  cus- 
tomary color  tone  is  mahogany,  relieved  with  the  wonderful  deep 
copper  bronze  tint  found  in  some  few  of  the  Beluchistans ;  and  the 
skilful,  artistic  use  of  the  lighter  shades  gives  to  the  variations  of 
the  design  a  lustre  little  short  of  marvellous.  There  is  a  multiplied 
tree  pattern  in  the  border,  the  high  lights  of  which  are  in  thin  lines 
of  pure  white.  The  conformation  of  the  arch  and  niche  would  be  too 
heavy  and  severe  if  the  coloring  did  not  soften  them  so  completely. 
The  field  design  is  of  the  same  order  as  the  borders,  presenting  in 
more  elaborate  but  still  rectilinear  form  the  tree  motive.  Across  the 
field,  midway,  runs  a  broad  horizontal  band,  which,  aided  by  a 
perpendicular,  divides  the  whole  area  into  four  quite  distinct  parts, 
in  each  of  which  the  tree  appears.  What  the  significance  of  this 
division  may  be  it  is  hard  to  say.  So  plain  in  some  points  of  the 
prayer  rugs  is  the  likeness  to  the  Beluchistans  that  it  is  not  wholly 
unreasonable  to  believe  that  the  quartering,  even  though  the  fab- 
ric be  Mohammedan,  harks  back  in  some  way  to  the  quadruplicate 
division  which  maintains  throughout  all  the  Vedic  worship  writings 
of  India. 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that  the  Bokharas  are  wider  in  proportion  to 

2.^0 


TURKOMAN 

length  than  most  other  prayer  rugs,  always  excepting  the  old  style 
Bergamo.  The  only  light  color  used  in  them,  aside  from  the  white 
and  yellow  and  the  orange  values,  is  pale  blue,  in  which  the  minute 
floral  patterns  are  sometimes  laid.  The  pile,  which  is  woven  in  the 
Sehna  knot,  is  trimmed  very  close  in  the  old  pieces,  and  the  surface 
is  fine  and  velvety.  Very  rarely  a  pure  Bokhara  is  found  with  a 
field  of  blue  instead  of  red.  These  are  greatly  prized.  What  are 
frequently  sold  in  America  as  "  Bilooz,"  or  "blue  Bokharas,"  are 
Beluchistan  rugs,  made  in  a  blue  tone  instead  of  the  reds  and  bronzes 
which  prevail  in  most  of  their  class. 

Many  of  the  multitude  of  Turkoman  designs  of  which  Simakoff 
speaks  could  be  seen  up  to  a  few  years  ago  in  Tiflis,  whither  the 
Turkestan  bales  were  sent  for  redistribution ;  but  since  the  extension 
of  the  railway  to  Bokhara  and  Samarkand  the  Turkoman  tribes  can 
intrust  their  weavings  to  the  freight  agents  at  any  point  on  the  rail- 
way, with  the  knowledge  that  they  will  go  straight  through  to  the 
Constantinople  dealers.  The  result  is  that  in  Tiflis,  where  ten  or  a 
dozen  years  ago  good  Tekke  carpets  could  be  had,  there  is  now 
an  utter  dearth  of  them,  and  small  fragments  of  the  old  rugs  are 
deftly  sewn  together  to  make  a  piece  as  large,  perhaps,  as  a  prayer 
rug.     For  these  patchwork  affairs  astounding  prices  are  asked. 

It  is  impossible  for  any  one  to  fix  the  right  names  and  places  of 
manufacture  for  the  manifold  weavings  of  Turkestan,  unless,  indeed, 
it  be  a  native  intimately  acquainted  with  all  the  strolling  companies 
scattered  over  that  well-nigh  boundless  waste. 

They  differ  in  detail,  but  the  fundamental  parts  of  the  design,  as 
well  as  the  general  scheme  of  color,  vary  little.  It  is  well  to  take 
what  we  know  as  Bokharas  as  a  point  to  reckon  from.  There  are 
designs  which  approach  this  very  nearly,  and  there  are  others  which, 
while  following  the  color  scheme  and  general  arrangement,  have 
eliminated  many  of  the  features.     What  some  American  dealers  have 

«3« 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

chosen  to  call  Khiva- Bokhara,  for  example,  are  identical  with  the 
Bokharas  in  knot,  color  and  finish,  and  so  nearly  resemble  them  in 
pattern  that  at  first  glance  they  are  easily  mistaken  for  the  Bokhara 
pieces.  There  are  points  of  difference :  first,  the  Khiva-Bokharas 
are  inferior  to  the  Bokharas  in  fineness.  Superlative  Bokharas  have 
as  many  as  two  hundred  knots  or  even  more  to  the  square  inch,  and 
a  good  specimen  has  a  hundred  and  twenty.  The  best  of  the  Khiva- 
Bokharas  has  not  more  than  a  hundred.  Second,  scrutiny  reveals 
that  the  hard  division  into  squares  or  oblong  spaces  which  is  the 
feature  of  the  Bokharas  is  omitted  from  the  other  class  or  classes. 

In  yet  other  pieces  which  have  departed  even  more  widely  from 
what  we  have  adopted  as  a  standard  design,  animal  figures  are  used 
to  diversify  the  quarterings  of  the  octagon,  instead  of  the  geometrical 
and  quasi-floral  shapes.  This,  there  is  little  doubt,  denotes  that  the 
rugs  were  woven  by  tribes  making  their  home  in  the  more  westerly 
part  of  the  plain.  They  have  caught,  though  in  a  degree  diminished 
by  distance,  the  fashion  of  the  Caucasus,  so  frequently  illustrated  in 
the  Kabistan  and  Kazak  rugs.  They  have  adhered,  however,  rather 
strictly  to  the  Bokhara  traditions,  and  the  rugs  are  a  happy  and  con- 
venient medium  between  those  formal  fabrics  and  the  less  conven- 
tional weavings  of  the  Yomuds. 

The  "  Bokhara  pattern"  has  found  greater  popularity  in  America 
than  any  other  of  all  the  Turkoman  lot.  It  is  repeated  and  repeated 
in  rugs  great  and  small,  which  are  sent  to  this  country  by  thousands 
annually.  In  the  majority  of  them,  lately,  the  colors  are  bad.  Effort 
to  make  antiques  of  some  pieces  by  washing  has  reduced  them  from 
glowing  reds  to  the  palest  of  pinks.  The  market  weavers  have 
abandoned,  apparently,  the  other  designs,  and  yet  the  finest  speci- 
men of  Tekke  weaving  I  saw  presented  an  altogether  different  pat- 
tern— one  which  was  based  upon  the  diamond  shape,  after  the  style 
of  the  Yomuds,  and  not  on  the  square  and  octagon.     These  were  the 

232 


TURKOMAN 

carpets  of  which  my  fellow -voyager  had  spoken.  They  had  ai? 
incredible  number  of  knots  to  the  inch,  a  surface  fine  as  velvet,  and 
while  thin  and  flexible,  almost,  as  paper,  were  strong,  and  in  their 
design  and  texture  perfect. 

Dealers  offer  to  sell  what  are  known  as  "  Royal  Bokharas." 
If  there  were  any  "  Royal  Bokhara,"  it  would  be  the  kind  I  have  just 
mentioned,  and  they  are  made  no  more — and  probably  never  will  be. 

Yomud. —  There  is  one  variety  of  the  Turkoman  weavings 
which  carries  upon  its  face  indisputable  proof  of  its  origin.  Its  de- 
signs tell  where  it  was  woven. 

Away  at  the  western  end  of  Turkestan,  scattered  over  plains, 
along  the  shores  of  the  Caspian  and  in  the  foot-hills  of  the  mountain 
chain  which  has  for  a  time  stopped,  nominally,  the  southward  march 
of  the  Russian,  dwells  the  great  Yomud  horde  of  Turkomans.  There 
are,  perhaps,  no  rugs  which  from  an  ethnological  standpoint  are  more 
interesting  than  theirs.  They  are  satisfying,  not  more  by  reason  of 
their  warm  color,  admirable  weaving  and  neat,  cleanly  defined  pat- 
terns than  because  in  every  minutest  particular  they  are  what  one 
observing  the  geographical  position  of  the  Yomud  territory  must 
expect  them  to  be.  Following  religiously,  on  one  hand,  the  color, 
textile  traditions  and  general  theory  of  the  Tekke  folk,  with  whom 
they  are  by  race,  customs  and  political  affinity  allied,  the  Yomud 
weavers  have  yet  reached  out  across  the  Caspian  to  their  near  neigh- 
bors of  Daghestan,  Derbend,  Kuba  and  the  Shirvan  district,  and 
borrowed  for  the  borders  of  their  rugs  and  the  adornment  of  the  pure 
Turkoman  figures  all  the  elements  and  decorative  tricks  which  distin- 
guish the  fabrics  of  these  parts.  With  a  skill  of  which  they  might 
scarcely  be  suspected,  they  have  perfected  in  these  praiseworthy 
carpets  an  adaptation,  or  better,  an  amalgamation  of  patterns,  in  ideal 
accord  with  the  outline  of  the  process  as  given  in  the  chapter  on 
Design. 

333 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

The  task  has  been  simplified  by  the  fact  that  the  decorative 
quantities  with  which  they  have  had  to  deal,  on  both  sides,  are  purely 
rectilinear ;  nevertheless  a  great  obstacle  lay  in  the  way,  in  the  mat- 
ter of  coloration.  To  so  temper  the  uncompromising  blood-reds  of 
the  Bokharas  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  bright  yellows  and  blues  of 
the  Caucasians  on  the  other,  that  there  should  be  peace  and  harmony 
in  the  finished  carpet,  was  a  labor  for  masters.  It  has  been  accom- 
plished in  masterly  manner.  To  judge  by  the  side  borders  alone, 
one  might  reasonably  say,  looking  at  some  of  the  Yomud  rugs,  that 
they  had  come  from  the  Shirvan  or  Daghestan  looms.  And  yet  the 
end  borders  and  the  body  of  the  rugs  are  Turkoman.  In  some  cases 
the  colors  follow  the  red  schedule  of  the  Tekkes ;  in  others  that  is 
mellowed  almost  to  an  old  rose,  to  meet  and  harmonize  with  the  alien 
hues  of  the  Caucasus.  They  retain  the  striped  red  web  and  the  long 
fringe  of  goat's-hair ;  they  retain  in  general  the  Tekke  division,  but  it 
is  in  the  drawing  of  the  Caucasus.  The  latch-hook  is  everywhere. 
In  many  cases  there  is  a  broad  white  or  wool-colored  stripe  at  the 
outer  edge  of  the  web  on  the  ends,  and  in  it,  oftentimes,  a  small  out- 
line border  pattern,  embroidered  in  red  yarn.  Occasionally  the  fringe, 
instead  of  being  left  loose  all  the  way  across  the  end  of  the  rug,  is 
twisted  at  irregular  intervals  of  from  three  to  eight  inches  into  stout 
ropes  like  those  of  the  Kazaks.  Between  these  the  warp-threads  of 
goat's-hair  lie  loose. 

In  the  majority  of  Yomuds  the  pattern  is  an  array  of  diamond 
shapes,  distributed  upon  the  field  in  the  Turkoman  order,  but 
equipped  inside  and  out  with  the  latch-hook.  In  the  borders,  too, 
Caucasian  hand-marks  are  apparent.  There  is  the  stiff  form  of  the 
swaying  vine.  Where  it  crosses  from  one  side  to  the  other  it  is 
heavy  with  latch-hooks.  Where  it  lies  parallel  with  the  sides  it  is 
nothing  but  the  barber-pole  stripe  found  in  nearly  all  the  Transcau- 
casian  fabrics,  and  in  so  many  Kabistans.    Even  in  the  rugs  in  which 

a34 


TU  RKO  MAN 

it  may  be  held  to  have  originated,  this  stripe  does  not  play  a  more 
important  part  than  in  the  Yomuds.  It  furnishes  both  broad  and 
narrow  elements  for  the  sides  and  in  the  end  borders ;  it  figures  as 
trunk  in  the  tree  patterns,  the  branches  of  which  are  composed  of  a 
form  of  latch-hook. 

There  is  one  feature  which  seems  to  be  wholly  the  property  of 
the  Yomuds.  It  is  a  coarse  side  selvage  of  two  ribs,  which,  instead 
of  being  wholly  red,  has  alternate  squares  of  red  and  blue,  red  and 
brown,  or  two  shades  of  red,  in  each  rib,  so  that  a  sort  of  checker- 
board effect  is  secured.  Even  when  the  rugs  are  piled  out  to  the  last 
thread  of  warp  (body  finish,)  this  is  preserved  in  the  pile.  The  nearest 
approach  to  anything  of  the  sort,  in  any  other  rug,  is  the  selvage  of 
red,  white  and  blue  at  the  ends  of  the  Shiraz,  but  that  is  worked  in 
the  Soumak  stitch,  while  the  selvage  of  the  Yomuds  is  in  the  khilim 
or  tapestry  stitch.  The  piling  of  the  Yomuds  may  be  either  in  the 
Sehna  or  Ghiordes  knot. 

One  division  of  these  Turkoman  carpets,  which  avoids  on  the 
one  hand  close  adherence  to  the  Bokhara  device,  and  on  the  other 
the  latch-hook  style  of  the  Yomuds,  is  called  Beshir.  In  the  matter 
of  web  and  fringe  it  follows  the  example  of  the  rest  of  the  group,  but 
the  web  is  more  generously  adorned  with  stripes  than  in  any  of  the 
other  varieties.  The  patterns  manifest  somewhat  more  of  the  Arab 
character,  but  the  manner  of  arranging  them  upon  the  field  is  still 
that  of  Bokhara.  A  feature  of  the  border  is  the  "  reciprocal  saw- 
tooth," the  sechan  disih  of  the  Persians. 

Afghanistan- Bokhara. —  Another  interesting  although  perplex- 
ing feature  of  the  confusion  in  which  these  rugs  of  Middle  Asia  have 
become  involved  is  that  what  we  have  been  wont  to  purchase  as 
Afghan  carpets  are  really  the  product  of  Bokhara,  though  they  are, 
naturally  enough,  made  also  by  the  dwellers  in  northern  Afghanistan, 
on  the  slopes  of  the  Hindu  Kush  and  all  along  the  Bokhara  border. 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

They  are  great,  coarse  carpets  with  the  Bokhara  octagon  device 
much  enlarged,  and  without  the  dividing-Hnes  which  make  the  field 
of  the  finer  fabrics  look  like  a  decorated  checker-board.  Though  on 
a  greater  scale,  they  are  more  after  the  order  of  the  Khivas,  aad  have 
been  commonly  sold  under  that  name.  All  of  boldness,  all  of  wild 
force,  that  is  read  or  imagined  of  the  dwellers  in  these  stern  uplands, 
finds  record  and  expression  in  the  Afghan  carpets.  They  are  fierce 
and  full  of  character.  The  spirit  of  the  mountains  and  gorges  is  in 
them.  The  gloom  of  wind-swept  highlands  is  over  them.  They  are 
of  a  dark,  savage  red,  or  rather  of  two  reds  —  one  with  an  ugly 
suggestion  of  blood  in  it,  the  other  darker  and  more  sombre,  dulled 
by  the  admixture  of  indigo  almost  to  brown. 

The  patterns,  great  and  grim  and  impressionistic,  are  thrown  in 
with  much  freedom  and  energy.  Dashes  of  white,  positive  to  a 
degree,  but  minute  in  such  a  desert  of  grimness,  only  emphasize  the 
rude  grandeur  of  the  fabrics.  The  border  is  crude,  but  in  it  is 
recorded  the  finer  spirit  of  the  people.  Whatever  there  is  in  them 
of  leaning  toward  civilization  and  the  politer  arts  has  its  expression 
here.  Outside  of  this,  formed  by  the  ends  of  the  goat's-hair  warp, 
is  a  long,  straying,  ashen-brown  fringe,  suggesting  the  beard  of  the 
Cossack.  Some  pieces  —  the  minority  —  are  wrought  out  in  lighter 
shades,  but  the  ratio  between  the  values  is  still  justly  maintained. 
The  web  takes  on  a  brighter  tone  and  better  finish  as  the  colors  of 
the  pile  grow  brighter ;  the  fringe  is  a  lighter  gray.  The  consistency 
of  it  shows  a  certain  artistic  impulse  strong  in  the  nature  of  the 
people.  Other  examples  manifest  a  leaning  to  orange  and  bits  of 
light  blue.  In  some  the  squares  are  resumed,  some  of  them  being 
laid  in  orange,  others  in  rich  green.  The  borders  grow  in  com- 
plexity, and  flower  patterns  creep  in  ;  but  at  the  brightest  they  are 
in  harsh  contrast  with  the  flower-strewn  carpets  of  the  Persian  or 
the  brilliant  panels  of  the  Caucasian. 

236 


TURKOMAN 

The  Afghans  are  sometimes  made  of  goat's-hair  and  some- 
times of  wool.  The  warp  is  of  brown  wool  or  the  coarser  hair  of  the 
goat.  Spinning  these  filaments  is  a  difficult  task.  When  wet  they 
curl  so  tightly  that  they  cannot  be  spun  at  all ;  therefore  the  hair  is 
not  always  washed,  but  after  the  shearing  is  carefully  combed.  There 
sometimes  remains  in  a  warp  made  of  this  thread  a  strong  odor 
which  it  is  quite  difficult  to  remove. 

The  nomad  products  of  Afghanistan  itself  show  a  diversity  which 
quite  entitles  them  to  a  separate  classification,  after  setting  apart  the 
Herat  carpets,  which  have  been  placed  with  the  Khorassan  group  of 
Persia,  and  most  of  which  are  to-day  really  made  in  Persia.  Perhaps 
the  most  singular,  as  they  are  the  rarest,  of  these  "independent"  Af- 
ghan fabrics  are  made  by  the  Turkoman  tribes  dwelling  in  the  defiles 
of  the  Barkhut  Mountains,  the  gateway  through  which  is  the  renowned 
Pass  of  Herat.  Their  rugs  are  a  positive  announcement  of  their 
position  on  the  map,  for  they  have  borrowed  the  design,  fish  pattern 
and  all,  from  the  Herati,  but  have  wrought  it  out  in  the  colors  of 
their  kinsmen  and  neighbors  on  the  north.  The  relationship,  the 
strong  general  likeness  of  the  fabrics  in  color  and  theory  of  contrast, 
and  finally  that  they  are  both  worked  in  the  Sehna  knot  while  the 
Herati  use  the  Ghiordes,  would  perforce  lead  to  placing  these  rugs 
in  the  same  class  as  the  Tekkes.  This  version  of  the  Herat  pattern 
is  wholly  rectilinear.  The  leaves  which  inclose  the  rosette  are  like 
bent  spear-heads,  and  the  flowers  and  stalks  are  stiff  to  the  last 
degree.  Aside  from  the  blood-red  of  the  ground  and  the  dark  brown 
or  blue  which  is  used  to  outline  the  patterns,  there  is  small  show  of 
any  color  in  the  body  of  the  rug.  In  the  borders  there  is  more  life. 
The  pattern  here,  usually  a  great,  indented  octagon,  combined  with 
some  form  of  the  tree,  is  adorned  with  several  bright  colors,  orange, 
light  blue  and  the  like.  Its  lines  are  plainly  copied  from  the  old 
Beluchistans. 

«37 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

These  weavers  seem  to  have  caught  from  the  Herati,  too,  the 
notion  of  magnitude.  The  carpets  are  meant  for  chef-d'ceuvres,  and 
are  pretentious  affairs.  Some  of  them  are  twenty  feet  or  more  in 
length.  Until  the  manufacture  of  whole  carpet  sizes  in  the  Bokharas 
was  begun, —  after  the  railway  had  opened  the  wilds  of  Turkestan 
to  commerce, —  these  Afghan  fabrics  were  far  and  away  the  largest 
of  all  the  Turkoman  carpets.  They  have  the  broad  web  at  the  ends. 
Some  of  them  have  coarse  goat's-hair  for  warp,  and  the  pile  contains 
sufficient  of  the  soft  goat's-fleece  to  give  them  a  lustre  like  to  that 
of  the  finest  of  the  Tekke  fabrics. 

Throughout  the  southern  ranges  of  Afghan  hills,  down  as  far  as 
Kandahar,  rugs  similar  to  these  are  woven,  all  copying  in  some  meas- 
ure from  the  Persianized  patterns  of  Herat  and  Khorassan,  but 
adhering  to  the  stiff,  rectilinear  treatment  found  in  Turkestan  and 
Beluchistan  carpets.  Many  of  them  have  the  Beluchistan  coloring 
instead  of  the  Bokhara  red.  All  these  are  without  doubt  the  fabrics 
referred  to  by  Mr.  Robinson  in  his  "Eastern  Carpets"  thus:  "The 
weavers  of  these  particular  carpets  are  not  able  to  give  the  floral 
patterns  they  use  their  true  forms ;  and  the  explanation  of  their 
inability  to  do  so  probably  lies  in  the  fact  that  they  are  a  Turanian 
people,  settled  among  Aryan  neighbors,  by  whom  they  have  not  yet 
been  completely  Aryanized." 

Beluchistan. —  The  rugs  of  Beluchistan,  ever  smce  rugs  began 
to  be  an  article  of  commerce,  have  been  brought  laboriously  across 
the  rugged  reaches  of  Afghanistan  to  find  market  in  the  Turko- 
man cities.  They  are  of  many  types.  Some  of  them  are  of  no  type, 
embodying  features  from  more  than  one  form  of  decoration.  They 
have  not  escaped  the  general  decadence.  The  modern  Beluchistans 
have  fallen  about  as  far  from  the  high  standard  established  by  the 
old  ones  as  any  rugs  which  find  their  way  out  of  the  East  to-day.  It 
is  not  surprising,   for  the   production   is   enormous,   and   even   the 

438 


TURKOMAN 

coarsest  and  poorest  of  these  are  stable  and  full  of  "  wear."  This 
modern  stuff  from  Beluchistan  is  nearly  all  made  on  one  model,  with 
some  small  diversity  in  color  and  less  in  design.  The  old  rugs  were 
in  many  forms,  and  although  the  colors  differed  according  to  the 
influence  under  which  each  piece  or  collection  of  pieces  was  wrought, 
there  was  always  a  depth  and  luminous  quality  in  the  dyes,  a  lustre 
in  the  wool,  which,  with  certain  textile  peculiarities  which  never 
seemed  to  be  omitted,  made  them  easy  of  recognition.  That  they 
should  have  maintained  any  fidelity  at  all  to  pristine  design  is  sin- 
gular when  the  geographical  location  and  history  of  the  country  are 
considered.  On  one  side  they  have  the  Kirman  province,  where  the 
old  Iranian  creed  and  textile  methods  are  still  preserved ;  on  the 
northwest  is  Khorassan,  with  its  rich  floral  fabrics,  bright  in  color 
and  full  of  realism ;  to  the  north  is  Afghanistan,  whose  principal 
carpets,  from  the  earliest  times  to  the  present  day,  have  retained 
the  most  perfect  Persian  character,  and  have,  as  a  matter  of  fact, 
been  sold  as  Persians ;  on  the  east,  India,  where  Persian  models 
have  for  at  least  three  hundred  years  been  followed  with  scrupulous 
fidelity. 

This  little  four-cornered  country  has  been  constantly  traversed 
through  all  the  centuries  by  Greek,  Arabic,  Persian  and  Mongol  in- 
vaders of  India,  and  by  the  great  caravan  trade  which  long  before  the 
Christian  era  was  carried  on  between  India  and  the  Mediterranean 
coast.  Still  the  Beluchistan  fabrics  have  preserved  a  system  of  design 
and  coloring  which  bears  little  resemblance  to  any  other  of  the  East. 
There  is  found  now  and  then  among  the  Yuruks  of  Asia  Minor  a  rug 
which  in  general  tone,  patterns  and  principal  colors  forcibly  suggests 
the  Beluchistans. 

Ethnologists  are  at  a  loss  to  determine  the  derivation  of  the 
Beluchees  and  Brahoes,  who  inhabit  Beluchistan,  having  long  ago 
wrested  it  from  the  Hindus.     They  are  generally  believed  to  have 

239 


O  RI  ENT  AL    RUGS 

come  from  Syria  or  Arabia,  but  in  the  turbulent  course  of  time  the 
stock  has  been  replenished  by  wandering  tribes  of  Kurds,  and  even 
large  bodies  of  Grecian  adventurers  are  known  to  have  settled  there 
and  ingrafted  themselves  permanently  upon  the  population.  It  is  sig- 
nificant that  the  Beluchistan  weavers  use  the  Sehna  knot.  Aside 
from  this  there  is  small  trace  of  Persian  influence  in  their  weaving. 

The  predominating  influence  in  Beluchistan  for  several  hundred 
years  has  been  Turkoman.  The  chronicles  of  invasion  show  it,  and 
there  are  corroborative  marks  which  still  abide  in  the  textiles.  Occa- 
sionally a  piece  is  found  which  while  borrowing  something  from  the 
Chinese,  with  whom  the  Beluchees  have  always  had  caravan  com- 
munication, follows  in  a  general  way  the  Tekke  arrangement  and  also 
the  Turkestan  theory  in  coloring,  while  preserving  in  its  finishing  the 
Beluchistan  marks. 

All  the  Beluchistan  rugs  are  heavy  in  tone.  Where  the  principal 
figures  are  laid  in  madder  or  deep  blues,  they  have  a  richness  not 
surpassed.  The  greater  number  of  them,  in  the  American  market  at 
least,  are  of  a  brown  cast.  The  range  of  colors  is  narrow.  Few 
bright  ornamental  figures  appear,  though  orange  and  some  light 
shades  of  red  are  sparingly  used.  The  rug  in  such  cases  takes  on  a 
brown  key,  and  the  design,  which  invariably  has  a  certain  ruggedness 
about  it,  is  drawn  simply,  in  lighter  shades  of  the  same.  Brightness 
and  accent  are  sometimes  secured  by  working  the  outlines  of  the 
patterns  in  orange  or  a  yellowish  white.  Most  of  the  figures  are 
big  hexagons,  octagons, —  all  sorts  of  loose  geometrical  devices, — 
ornamented  inside  and  out  with  broad  lines  and  keys  in  parallel 
arrangement,  which  emphasizes  the  rectilinear  effect.  The  field  in 
many  Beluchistans  is  divided  into  two  or  three  parts  by  transverse 
stripes  of  the  same  character.  Sometimes,  in  the  old  rugs,  these  fig- 
ures are  woven  in  floral  form,  suggesting  garlands.  The  derivation 
of  the  treatment  is  not  clear. 

340 


TURKOMAN 

The  pile  is  quite  long  and  compact.  The  ends  have  a  web  like 
that  of  the  Bokharas,  extending  sometimes  ten  or  twelve  inches  beyond 
the  pile.  This,  figured  in  colors  or  worked  in  a  minute  diaper  pat- 
tern, makes  a  most  artistic  finish. 

Although  in  point  of  propinquity  these  carpets  might  naturally 
enough  be  counted  among  the  India  fabrics,  the  rug  dealers  and  rug 
makers  of  the  peninsula  do  not  so  consider  them.  Even  the  wool  of 
Beluchistan  is  not,  as  a  rule,  taken  for  the  modern  India  carpets,  since 
most  of  it  is  of  a  dark  hue,  and  experiments  have  failed  to  make  it 
take  on  the  light  colors  required  in  the  India  designs.  Bleaching, 
which  has  been  industriously  tried,  serves  only  to  impair  its  quality. 
Perhaps  this  has  had  much  to  do  with  the  long  preservation  of  dis- 
tinctive character  in  the  Beluchistans,  a  character  which  makes  them 
easy  of  identification,  even  among  a  multitude  of  other  fabrics.  The 
weavers  have  made  of  necessity  a  virtue  which  has  redounded  greatly 
to  their  credit  and  to  their  advantage  as  well.  They  have  utilized 
the  dark  natural  hues  of  the  wool,  and  attained  additional  depth, 
lustre  and  softness  from  a  free  admixture  of  goat's- fleece,  which  is 
produced  in  plenty  in  their  mountains. 

Samarkand. — The  rugs  named  for  the  city  which  was  the  capital 
of  the  conqueror  Tamur,  and  which  is  now  his  burial-place,  are  in 
numberless  characteristics  eloquent  of  Mongol  influence.  Most  of 
them  show  only  the  smallest  trace  of  Persian  or  Caucasian  form. 
The  central  field,  to  begin  with,  is  usually  covered  over  with  the  intri- 
cate Chinese  fret,  laid  in  some  shade  of  red  or  blue  on  a  ground  of 
some  other  value,  or  red  on  blue,  or  vice  versa ;  sometimes  it  is  in  a 
pale  tint  of  fawn  brown  on  a  background  of  yellowish  white.  Dis- 
tributed in  this  area  are  medallions,  one,  two,  three,  four  or  five, — 
seldom  more, —  in  which  sometimes  appear  Chinese  devices,  such  as 
the  dragon,  fish  or  pheasant,  and  sometimes  flowers.  These  medal- 
lions are  round  or  polygonal.     Occasionally  there  is  a  single  large 

241 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

one  in  the  centre,  and  rectilinear  floral  forms  appear  about  it.  In  the 
borders  the  fret  is  further  utilized  in  various  shapes  and  colors,  or 
there  are  decorative  symbols  of  animal  origin  but  floral  form,  which 
alone  bear  the  mark  of  Persian  treatment.  Yellow  predominates  in 
the  borders,  giving  the  fabric  a  warm  tone. 

In  many  of  the  rugs  of  Samarkand  the  fretted  field  and  its  me- 
dallions have  been  abandoned  for  an  attempt  at  floral  display,  but  the 
rich,  almost  lurid  coloring  remains  ;  the  reds  and  yellows,  and  in  a 
smaller  degree  the  blues,  in  which  these  flowery  fields  are  wrought, 
are  superb.  But  amid  the  profusion  there  always  creeps  in  some  feat- 
ure reminiscent  of  the  old  pattern.  In  most  cases  it  is  the  largest  of 
the  flower  forms,  which  stand  out  so  straight,  so  heavy,  so  prominent, 
so  octagonal,  that  they  utterly  obscure  the  accompanying  patterns, 
and,  stripped,  before  the  mind's  eye,  of  all  the  stems  and  leaves  which 
surround  them,  are  naught  but  the  old  figures  after  all. 

It  is  to  be  noted,  in  connection  with  this  Mohammedan  floral  de- 
velopment in  the  rugs  of  Samarkand,  that  upon  the  taking  of  Baghdad 
and  other  Western  cities  the  Mongol  ruler  took  back  with  him  to  his 
capital  the  greatest  artists  and  artisans,  in  the  hope  of  instilling  a  new 
art  impulse  into  his  people.  The  elaboration  noticeable  even  in  the 
present  day  in  many  of  the  Samarkand  carpets  must  be  considered  a 
remote  result  of  that  effort. 

The  borders  of  the  Samarkands  carry  two  main  stripes,  of  me- 
dium width.  One  usually  presents  the  undulating  vine  in  more  or 
less  angular  form ;  the  other,  a  lotus  pattern,  three  flowers  on  a  stem, 
which  calls  to  mind  the  similar  formation  in  the  old  Ghiordes  border. 
All  around  the  outside  of  the  rug  is  usually  a  narrow  band  of  some 
solid  color.  In  nearly  all  the  Samarkands  four  threads  of  the  weft, 
which  is  of  cotton  or  brown  wool,  are  carried  across  after  every 
row  of  knots,  as  in  the  Kazaks.  The  warp  is  usually  of  cotton. 
The   knot  is   Sehna.      The  ends  are  finished  with  a  narrow  web 

242 


TURKOMAN 

and  loose  warp-ends.  Sometimes  the  broad  Turkoman  web  is  em- 
ployed. 

Armenian  dealers  often  apply  to  the  Samarkand  rugs  the  name 
of  "  Malgaran,"  mentioned  heretofore  as  a  common  substitute  title  for 
Tcherkess  and  Mingreli.  The  confusion  arises  partly  from  the 
tenacious  belief  that  Mingreli  is  a  corruption  of  Mongolian. 

Yarkand  and  Kashgar. —  Little  is  heard  in  American  markets 
of  the  rugs  of  Yarkand  and  Kashgar.  They  are  exported  from  Asia 
through  Peking,  and  a  few  examples  have  found  their  way  to  Constan- 
tinople with  other  consignments,  and  have  been  picked  up  by  American 
buyers  there.  Of  late  there  has  been  a  considerable  influx  of  these 
fabrics  to  American  markets.  The  Yarkand  district  is  somewhat  out 
of  the  way  of  the  Persian  influence.  The  city  is  a  hundred  miles  or 
more  east  of  Kashgar.  It  is  well  aloof  in  a  southeasterly  direction 
from  both  Bokhara  and  Samarkand,  being  eight  hundred  miles  from 
one  and  six  hundred  miles  from  the  other.  After  the  shaking  off  of 
Chinese  rule  and  the  establishment  of  an  East  Turkestan  empire,  with 
capital  at  Kashgar,  Yarkand  became  an  important  trade  centre,  but 
on  the  death  of  Yakub  Beg  in  1877,  Kashgar  was  again  taken  by  the 
Chinese,  and  Yarkand  reverted  to  the  old  sovereignty.  Cut  off  by 
such  a  stretch  of  wild  upland  country  from  the  trade  centres  of  the 
West,  and  with  the  Great  Pamir  and  other  vast  mountain  ranges  tow- 
ering between  it  and  the  markets  of  India,  Yarkand  for  a  long  time 
escaped  the  demoralization  which  had  attacked  most  of  the  rug-mak- 
ing districts.  Mr.  Robinson  found  its  fabrics  many  years  ago  at 
Srinagar  in  Kashmir,  along  with  some  of  the  weavings  of  Thibet. 
He  described  the  old  examples  as  being  made  with  silky  wool,  taken 
probably  from  the  yak.  "  The  quality  of  these  rugs,"  he  adds,  "  is 
admirable,  and  the  colors  harmonious,  the  designs  having  a  Tartar 
character  in  the  geometrical  figures,  circles,  medallions  and  octagons, 
alternately  blue,  red,  green  and  yellow — the  green  of  an  emerald 

243 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

hue,  obtained  by  dyeing  strongly  with  Persian  berry  over  in- 
digo." 

It  is  plain  that  either  the  quality  ot  these  carpets  has  declined 
amazingly,  or  that  those  which  Mr.  Robinson  saw  were  show-pieces 
and  far  superior  to  the  average,  for  the  consignments  which  have 
come  to  America  during  recent  years  have  presented  but  little  that 
was  attractive.  Consistency  is  their  chief  merit.  Interest  in  them  is 
based  principally  on  their  oddity.  They  are  nothing  if  not  Chinese. 
They  show  no  trace  of  the  Western  influence  noticeable  in  the  Samar- 
kands,  no  indication  of  effort  at  floral  diapers.  The  fretted  grounds 
are  most  frequent.  The  circles  and  octagons,  with  their  Chinese  em- 
blems, are  a  multitude.  Dragons  and  fishes  and  variations  of  the  fret 
are  everywhere.  In  some  pieces  the  medallions,  instead  of  being 
large  and  few  in  number,  are  small,  contain  a  wonderful  diversity  of 
figures,  and  are  distributed,  more  or  less  regularly,  all  over  the  field. 
A  favorite  form  is  the  combination  of  four  dragons,  so  arranged  that 
they  form  a  swastika.  The  entire  filling  in  some  examples  is  made 
up  of  realistic  animals. 

The  border  space  is  small  in  proportion  to  the  size  of  the  rug. 
There  are  usually  three  stripes,  a  broad  middle  stripe,  with  a  guard 
stripe  on  either  side,  but  the  guard  stripes  are  not  figured  alike,  as 
is  customary  in  Persian  or  Turkish  rugs  where  the  borders  are  simi- 
larly distributed.  In  most  cases  there  is  some  form  of  the  Chinese- 
Greek  border,  most  frequently  of  two  meanders,  so  intertraced  as  to 
form  swastikas  at  intervals,  and  so  shaded  as  to  present  the  ma- 
terial effect  of  relief  The  narrower  stripes  are  adorned  with  some 
fret  forms  or  Chinese  floral  conceits. 

The  colors  are  garish,  and,  though  in  some  cases  brilliant,  are 
not  warm  nor  attractive.  Pale  terra-cotta,  tending  to  pink,  is  common. 
Some  rugs  are  made  up  of  grayish  white  and  yellows ;  others  present 
only  white  with  two  shades  of  blue,  suggesting  delft.     The  greens 

344 


fit    v/on   . 

jJiup  ^^y  'dl  ,fiJ§n3l  ni 

xia  sriJ  ]  >  3riJ  Haw 

finB  ,qirf  dtl  :jii  :                                               lo  SDoiq 

noqu  13/  il  navoiq  ...  ,.-..,                                iuddb  arl* 

ni  9D3iq  r   nohr^mtriny}                                 ia   lariJb 

taqiBD  2i  oijjgoq  i                >mB8  arii 

bnsri  riJiw  ,oiioi  -'3  yd  boxlailduq  ajsw 

rfntrfw  >>3j£lq  baJniBq 


U  LV^I  >^ 


Plate  XXII.    The  Ardebil  Mosque  Carpet 

32.0  X  i6.o 

Considering  that  the  actual  size  of  the  Ardebil  carpet,  which  is  now  in 
the  South  Kensington  Museum,  is  sixteen  feet  in  width  by  thirty-two  feet 
in  length,  the  enormously  reduced  representation  here  offered  preserves  quite 
well  the  essential  features.  Beyond  question  the  Persian  masterpiece  of  the  six- 
teenth century,  made  for  the  tomb  of  Sheikh  Ismael,  is  to-day  the  most  famous 
piece  of  weaving  in  the  world.  The  fabulous  fineness  of  its  workmanship,  and 
the  accuracy  of  its  design,  may  be  proven  by  selecting  at  random  any  flower  upon, 
either  side  of  the  field ;  examination  will  discover  its  companion-piece  in 
the  same  relative  position  on  the  opposite  side.  A  monograph  on  this  carpet 
was  published  by  Edward  Stebbing  in  London  in  1893,  in  folio,  with  hand- 
painted  plates,  which  showed  its  splendid  color  effects. 


tntertr 


-,,   aim    i><-' 


I  I  Iti     i  t  V.-1 


•I  rciici.      1  iit:  liar""' """"■•* 
' -aese  floral  con 


iades  of  blue,  suggesting  d 


>^:  ;rv.<-:v-v:-r^ 


TURKOMAN 

and  yellows  are  of  the  lemon  order.     There  is  some  vermilion  and 
orange  in  the  figures. 

As  to  texture :  the  material  is  coarse  wool,  the  pile  about  the 
medium  length  of  that  in  the  Demirdji  carpets ;  the  warp  is  of  four- 
strand  cotton ;  the  weft  is  thrown  across  four  threads  at  a  time, 
as  in  the  Samarkands ;  the  sides  have  a  selvage  built  upon  two 
threads  of  the  warp,  and  the  ends  are  finished  with  the  loose  warp- 
threads. 


XIII 
KH  I  LI  MS 

T^HE  hard,  smooth  coverings  known  as  khilims  (double-faced) 
are  exported  in  large  quantities  from  different  parts  of  the  East, 
and  are  of  such  thoroughly  Oriental  character  as  to  entitle 
them  to  a  prominent  place  in  consideration;  but  their  scope  in  the 
matter  of  execution  is  so  limited,  they  follow  type  so  closely,  that  there 
is  no  call,  and  indeed  no  latitude,  for  exhaustive  discussion  of  them. 
In  many  respects  there  are  no  carpets  made  in  the  East  which  are 
more  attractive  than  genuinely  good  khilims.  There  they  have  been 
employed  as  floor-coverings  from  the  very  earliest  times ;  in  America 
they  are  used  for  portieres  and  covers.  The  artistic  skill  shown  in 
them  consists  in  the  novel  adjustment  of  colors.  So  deft  are  the 
Eastern  weavers  in  this  that  two  rugs  of  the  selfsame  design,  but  with 
colors  differently  distributed,  look  utterly  unlike,  and  will  pass  for 
altogether  dissimilar  conceits.  The  hues  are  broad  and  in  some 
degree  crude.  The  treatment  is  wholly  rectilinear,  but  harmony  and 
softness  of  effect  are  secured  in  most  of  the  khilims  by  projecting  a 
series  of  rectangular  extensions  from  one  body  of  color  upon  that 
adjoining,  as  in  Daghestan,  Soumak  and  other  Caucasian  piled  rugs. 
This  peculiar  but  most  effective  edging  does  not  interfere  in  the 
least  with  the  design.     It  is  as  complete  as  though  its  outlines  were 

346 


K  H  I  L  I  M  S 

smooth  and  direct  instead  of  being  broken  by  such  numberless  serra- 
tions and  indentations.  Indeed,  when  it  is  considered  how  confusing 
these  irregularities  are,  the  skill  of  the  designer  and  weaver  seem 
magnified  fourfold.  To  one  unfamiliar  with  the  fabrics  the  serration 
and  diversification  seem  paramount.  It  is  only  when  viewed  from  a 
distance,  where  the  unity  of  the  design  may  be  seen  and  the  soften- 
ing effect  of  these  notched  edges  understood,  that  the  comprehensive 
beauty  of  the  khilims  is  apparent.  This  singular  factor,  which  rather 
engrosses  attention  at  first,  is  only  the  skilful  means  to  an  end;  but 
it  accomplishes  its  mission  so  well  that  it  seems  to  be  the  ruling 
motive  of  the  fabric,  and  it  creates  in  the  khilims  some  subtle  force 
of  fascination  which  precludes  their  ever  becoming  wearisome.  And 
to  heighten  even  further  the  efficacy  of  the  square- notched  edges,  the 
weaver  puts  in  at  the  end  of  each  of  the  reciprocal  projections  a  tiny 
patch  or  line  of  some  third  color,  often  woven  into  ornamental  shapes. 
At  first  inspection  this  escapes  the  eye ;  it  is  only  when  one  wonders 
how  these  uncomplementary  colors  can  join  in  such  a  restful  ensemble 
that  this  fine  device  is  discovered.  The  small  patterns  are  usually 
outlined  all  about,  in  the  same  fashion  and  with  the  same  purpose. 
It  is  doubtful  if  such  an  array  of  startling  colors,  in  such  large  areas, 
could  be  combined  in  any  other  way  without  palling.  The  necessity 
for  some  such  trick  as  this,  in  working  out  the  khilim  design  and  color 
scheme,  suggests  itself  at  once.  In  the  first  place,  they  are  smooth- 
surface  carpets,  and  so  devoid  of  all  the  softening  effects  which  natu- 
rally come  from  the  use  of  pile.  The  yarn  of  which  they  are  woven 
is  twisted  so  that  it  is  harder  and  more  linen-like  than  any  wool  yarns 
used  in  the  pile  carpets,  and  makes,  where  entirely  different  colors 
are  brought  close  to  one  another,  the  most  severe  line  of  demarcation. 
The  method,  or  stitch,  is  calculated  to  emphasize  this  harshness. 

It  is  probable,  from  the  general  character  of  the  stuffs,  that  the 
khilims  present  more  nearly  the  primitive  fashion  of  weaving  —  work- 

«47 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

ing  out  with  weft-threads  of  different  colors,  by  passing  them  around 
the  warp,  the  patterns  which  in  most  Eastern  fabrics  are  produced  by 
knotting.^ 

Sellers  of  rugs  rarely  go  to  the  pains  of  distinguishing  between 
the  several  varieties  of  khilims,  and  indeed  it  may  be  difficult  to  do  so, 
save  in  the  case  of  the  Sehnas,  which  differ  radically  from  all  the 
rest.  In  everything  except  the  difference  of  method  they  are  exact 
reproductions  of  the  Sehna  piled  rugs,  and  can  be  identified  by  the 
description  given  of  the  Sehnas  under  the  head  of  Persian  Fabrics. 
The  designs  and  colors  are  the  same,  and  in  point  of  fineness  they  as 
far  excel  the  other  khilims  as  the  Sehna  piled  products  do  the  rugs 
of  Karabagh  or  Shirvan. 

Aside  from  them,  nearly  all  the  khilims  offered  for  sale  in  America 
are  comprised  in  four  classes  —  Kurdish,  Shirvan,  Merv,  and  Tekke 
or  Karamanian.  The  Karamanian  and  sometimes  the  Kurdish  are 
made  in  two  sections  and  sewed  together  afterward.  The  discrep- 
ancy between  the  two  sides,  where  parts  of  the  pattern  are  supposed 
to  unite  at  the  seam,  is  greater  or  less,  but  rather  adds  to  the  interest 
in  the  fabric  than  detracts  from  it.  The  Kurdish  khilims  are  made  all 
through  Kurdistan,  but  those  from  the  Persian  side  of  the  border 
show  more  of  finish.  The  Karamanians  are  mostly  woven  by  Yuruks 
and  Turkomans  in  the  Sanjak  of  Tekke  in  old  Cappadocia,  along  the 
plateaus  of  the  Taurus.  The  population  is  mixed,  but  Turkomans 
predominate.  Some  khilims  which  bear  the  name  Karamanian  are 
also  woven  by  Christian  women  in  the  towns. 

The  Kurdish  and  Karamanian  khilims  differ  chiefly  in  point  of 


'  *'  As  velvet  probably  originated  in  Central  Asia,  and  certainly  felt,  I  think  it  very  likely  that 
there  also  the  Turkish  tribes  first  developed  the  art  of  sewing  tufts  of  wool  on  the  strings  of  the  warp 
of  the  carpets  they  had  learned  to  make  from  the  Persians,  and  that  the  manufacture  of  these  piled 
carpets  was  thus  introduced  by  the  Saracens  into  Europe  from  Turkestan  through  Persia.  The  Turks 
were  driven  to  the  invention  by  the  greater  coldness  of  their  climate." — Birdwood:  "  Industrial  Arts 
of  India." 

24» 


K  H  I  L  I  M  S 

coarseness.  The  Kurdish  are  finer.  There  are  noticeable  in  both, 
and  also,  in  a  lesser  measure,  in  the  Sehnas,  small  open  spaces  at  the 
edges  of  some  figures,  where  one  figure  ends  on  a  certain  warp- 
thread,  and  the  adjoining  one  begins  on  the  next.  The  uniting 
stitches  of  a  third  color  referred  to  above  are  omitted,  and  the  multi- 
tude of  open  spaces  thus  left  makes  the  design  seem  like  a  loose 
insertion.  In  the  heavy  pieces  known  as  kis  khilims,  or  winter 
spreads,  these  gaps  are  less  frequent,  the  aim  being  to  make  the 
fabric  as  compact  as  possible. 

The  patterns  are  chiefly  the  geometrical  ones  of  Turkestan  and 
the  Caucasus,  but  though  some  of  the  Persian  and  Arabic  ornamental 
forms  appear,  all  are  worked  out  in  a  manner  peculiar  to  themselves. 
Many  seemingly  intentional  irregularities  are  found.  Where,  for 
example,  some  figure  is  to  be  repeated  several  times  in  white,  it  is 
woven  once  or  twice  in  cotton,  while  all  the  rest  are  in  wool ;  or  where 
two  or  more  small  variegated  patterns  balance  each  other,  and  seem 
at  first  to  be  alike,  examination  shows  that  the  weaver,  evidently  out 
of  sheer  caprice,  has  made  some  curious  difference  between  them. 

The  border  stripes  are  not,  as  a  rule,  the  same  all  the  way 
around  the  fabric,  as  is  customary  in  most  of  the  piled  rugs.  The 
stripe  patterns  across  the  ends  are  different  from  those  along  the 
sides,  like  those  of  most  Turkoman  carpets,  and  the  rotation  of  colors 
is  by  no  means  regular.  There  is  much  latitude  for  the  exercise 
of  individual  whim  in  the  khilims,  and  the  weavers  avail  themselves 
of  it  to  the  full. 

In  the  Merv  fabric  the  number  of  open  spaces  is  reduced  to  a 
minimum.  Instead  of  making  the  patterns  rectangular,  and  ending  on 
the  perpendicular  line  of  the  warp,  where  a  gap  must  be  left  or  the 
additional  labor  of  joining  be  incurred,  the  defining  lines  of  the  figure 
run  diagonally,  the  projections  are  more  pointed,  the  gap  in  the  web 
is  avoided,  and  the  carpet  gains  greatly  in  compactness. 

349 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

In  design  these  Merv  khilims,  some  of  which  are  of  great 
size,  are  not  so  startling  as  the  Kurdish  and  Karamanian.  The 
garish  colors  are  few  ;  the  white  is  more  sparingly  applied.  The  field 
is  usually  divided  transversely  into  three  or  four  parts,  by  ornate  line 
patterns.  The  designs  strongly  suggest  the  Beluchistan  rugs  in  this 
regard.  The  high  lights,  as  in  the  Beluchistans,  are  found  in  the 
border  —  white  lines,  serrated,  very  pronounced,  running  sometimes 
the  entire  length  of  the  fabric,  with  small  geometrical  devices  worked 
in  the  angles. 

The  methods  of  weaving  are  much  alike  in  all  the  khilims  thus 
far  named.  The  work  is  done  with  shuttles,  on  which  the  weft- 
threads  are  wound:  By  passing  them  the  colors  are  carried  in  and 
out  across  the  warp,  making  an  even,  corded  surface,  the  "  grain " 
of  which  is  the  warp  itself.  Whole  figures  of  the  pattern  are  woven 
separately.  It  is  this  that  causes  the  open  spaces  between  them. 
The  Shirvan  khilims  follow  in  general  the  Daghestan  idea  of 
design. 

The  Persians  have  a  khilim  known  as  doruy  woven  in  simple 
stripes  all  the  way  across  the  field.  It  is  made  in  manner  similar  to  that 
of  the  Kurdish  and  Karamanian.  In  Turkestan  there  is  made  what  is 
known  as  the  Bokhara  khilim,  which  is  an  altogether  different  thing. 
A  web  is  woven  in  the  deep  Bokhara  red  color ;  upon  this  is  embroi- 
dered with  thread  and  needle  the  characteristic  Bokhara  design.  In 
Shirvan  the  same  thing  is  done;  all  through  Turkey,  in  fact,  are 
made  these  djijims,  following  the  rug  patterns  in  vogue  in  their  re- 
spective locaUties.  They  resemble  the  khilims  but  little,  and  should 
properly  be  classed  with  the  Baghdad  portieres.  Among  the  Kurds 
and  Karamanians,  but  rarely  among  the  Persians  or  the  people  of 
Merv,  the  khilims  are  woven  in  the  form  of  prayer  rugs.  The  niche 
in  the  Karamanian  and  Kurdish  prayer  khilims  is  patterned  after 
the  Ghiordes. 

8jO 


K  H  I  L  I  M  S 

Khilims  have  of  late  been  extensively  made  in  Servia,  Bosnia 
and  other  parts  of  Turkey  in  Europe. 

In  many  parts  of  the  Orient  a  fabric  called  izoul  or  izul  is  made 
of  coarse  wool  or  goat's-hair  and  in  the  khilim  stitch,  but  with  no 
effort  at  design,  except  in  some  cases  stripes  of  the  several  natural 
shades  of  the  hair.  It  is  strong,  durable  and  sometimes  water-proof. 
It  is  the  burlaps,  the  tent-canvas,  the  horse-blanket,  the  grain-sack, 
the  travelling-bag  —  in  short,  the  universal  handy  wrapping  material 
of  the  East.  It  is  also  used  as  a  filling  on  floors,  and  the  gay-colored 
rugs  are  placed  upon  it,  gaining  in  brightness  by  contrast  with  its 
dull  shades.  Among  the  Karamanians  in  eastern  Anatolia  it  is  cus- 
tomary to  work  some  lively  designs  upon  these  tzouls  with  the  needle. 


XIV 
INDIA 

WITH  the  barely  possible  exception  of  two  or  three  varie- 
ties, the  Indian  carpets  sold  to-day  are  wholly  modern 
creations.  The  antique  fabrics,  many  of  which  were 
admirable,  are  no  longer  to  be  had  and  scarcely  to  be  seen,  least  of  all 
in  American  markets.  Such  of  the  genuine  old-time  examples  as  re- 
mained after  the  English  exploitation  of  Indian  arts  and  industries 
were  obtained  by  English  and  European  collectors,  and  have  disap- 
peared from  view.  The  East  India  Company,  owner  of  most  of  the 
good  ones,  sold  them,  and  so  eagerly  were  they  taken  up  that  even 
the  British  museums  were  in  the  end  unable  to  secure  such  specimens 
as  would  have  been  desirable.  The  industrial  development  of  India 
under  English  rule  dissipated  the  old  methods  so  rapidly  that  within 
twenty-five  years  after  the  first  public  exhibition  of  these  fabrics  in 
London,  in  1851,  the  carpet  product  had  become  entirely  altered  in 
character. 

There  are  preserved  in  the  museum  at  Jeypore  a  number  of  the 
old  India  carpets  found  at  the  time  of  the  British  occupation.  All 
give  proof  of  Persian  derivation.  The  story  of  carpet- making  in 
India,  and  in  truth  of  all  Indian  arts,  dates  practically  from  the 
supremacy  of  Akbar  in  the  sixteenth  century.     There  is  small  doubt 

25:: 


Plate  XXIII.    Yomud  Turkoman 

I0.2  X  7 

Property  of  the  A  tithor 

■■  While  this  rug,  by  reason  of  the  old  rose  tint  of  its  ground' color  in  certain 
lights,  must  be  classed  as  a  Yomud,  there  is  a  certain  paucity  of  coloration  in 
the  border,  to  wit,  an  absence  of  yellows  and  blues  and  other  shades  prevalent 
in  the  Caucasus,  which  makes  it  likely  that  it  was  woven  among  the  Akhal 
or  Salor  Turkomans,  or  some  tribe  a  little  remote  from  the  Caspian  coasts. 
The  central  design,  however,  with  its  tendency  to  an  ornate  and  picturesque 
diamond  device  instead  of  one  bounded  only  by  the  hard  octagon  of  the 
Bokhara,  so-called,  shows  that  the  carpet  is  not  a  product  of  any  of  the  eastern 
Turkoman  provinces.  It  is  a  sterling  rug  and  the  extreme  accuracy  with  which 
the  patterns  are  wrought  predicates  at  once  the  fineness  of  texture — which  it 
has — and  skill  on  the  part  of  the  weaver.  There  is  a  suggestion  of  vine  and 
flower  in  the  latch-hook  and  tarantula  arrangement  of  the  border  stripes. 

ne  .m«'  -iopme 

ipated  the  old  methc  ly  thai  wititia 

;s  attc.                                 xhibilj  :ese  fabrics  in 

pic^duc  "       '  -red  in 

ciiatacu^;. 


■— --.     The  ......  --^•■■- 

in    MU.U  y,.  ....    .r.v..an   arts.   ^^^'^  ■  -.-^v    -   --   -- 

r  Ai-v..  ;n  f-T-r^  ^Iv'T- tiffw-"  is  small  doubt 


INDIA 

that  by  reason  of  previous  invasion  the  Persian  manufacture  and  use 
of  carpets  had  already  become  to  some  extent  popular  among  the 
vanquished  people.  It  was  one  of  the  wise  accomplishments  of  Akbar 
to  crystallize  the  custom,  establish  it  as  an  industry,  elevate  it  as  an 
art.  Following  the  system  which  has  prevailed  in  the  great  cities  of 
Persia,  he  set  up  looms  in  the  palace,  and  installed  weavers  there. 
How  thoroughly  the  Khorassan  and  Persian -Afghan  influence  domi- 
nated Indian  art  from  that  time  forward  is  shown  by  the  antique  car- 
pets of  Lahore,  one  of  which  Mr.  Vincent  Robinson  has  reproduced 
in  his  "  Eastern  Carpets."  The  central  field  is  almost  identical  with 
that  of  the  Herat  fabrics  heretofore  described.  The  border  presents 
a  long,  straight,  graceful  cone  pattern,  in  a  most  ornamental  shade 
of  light  blue,  approaching  turquoise,  and  so  ornate  in  its  workman- 
ship that  it  seems  to  belong  to  a  shawl  design  rather  than  to  a  car- 
pet border. 

The  example  set  by  the  Emperor  was  followed  almost  universally 
throughout  India,  not  alone  in  the  weaving,  but  in  all  the  arts. 
Rulers  of  provinces  and  districts  and  even  the  village  dignitaries 
maintained  an  extensive  patronage.  With  such  support  weaving 
took  on  a  sumptuary  character,  as  it  had  in  Persia.  With  these  royal 
examples  to  inspire  them,  the  weavers  wrought  ambitiously  in  their 
less  pretentious  pieces.  The  village  and  caste  systems  did  much  to 
foster  effort  and  to  perpetuate  high  standard.  By  the  first  of  these 
each  community  was  established  as  a  unit,  under  control,  generally, 
of  one  man  whose  function  it  was  to  assess  and  collect  the  town's 
share  of  the  imperial  tax ;  the  second,  which  attained  in  India  such 
perfection  of  development  as  it  has  known  nowhere  else  in  the  world, 
made  the  trades  and  professions  hereditary.  The  weaver's  son  suc- 
ceeded to  his  father's  station,  and  strove  to  emulate  his  accomplish- 
ments. In  the  weaving  families  each  generation,  reared  to  the  art, 
studied  to  add  new  worth  and  beauty  to  the  designs,  the  fundamental 

253 


ORIENTAL    RUGS 

elements  of  which  had  been  the  proud  possession  of  its  forebears. 
There  could  be  only  one  result  of  such  a  system.  Mr.  Robinson 
says :  "  The  spread  of  this  manufacture  extended  over  the  whole 
of  India,  and  as  late  as  the  middle  of  this  century  was  practised,  very 
much  in  its  integrity,  from  Kashmir  to  as  far  south  as  Tanjore." 

It  is  almost  inexplicable  that  a  system  so  strongly  grounded,  so 
literally  and  figuratively  inwoven  with  the  family  and  civil  life  of  the 
people,  could  in  so  brief  a  time  have  been  destroyed ;  but  such  seems 
to  have  been  the  case.  The  apparent  first  cause  was  the  desire  of  the 
Indian  government  to  furnish  occupation  for  its  prisoners  in  jails 
throughout  the  empire,  and  incidentally  to  neutralize  the  expense  of 
maintaining  the  corrective  system.  Brought  thus  into  competition 
with  prison  labor,  the  caste  weaver  was  undersold,  and  had  no  resource 
save  to  cheapen  his  product  and  increase  its  volume.  The  jail  manu- 
facture was  at  first  looked  upon  as  a  splendid  invention,  since  the 
singular  aptitude  of  the  prisoners  enabled  them  to  master  the  weaving 
readily,  and  when  they  were  herded  together  their  work  could  be 
overseen  and  orders  enforced.  Originality  in  design  was  discounte- 
nanced, forbidden,  and  chemical  dyes  were  introduced.^ 

The  lack  of  wool  had  always  been  a  drawback  to  carpet-weaving 
in  parts  of  India.  In  fact,  the  only  carpets  made  there  prior  to  the 
Mohammedan  domination  were  wholly  of  cotton,  or  cotton  mixed 
with  silk.  The  support  of  the  nobles,  who  had  no  need  to  spare 
expense  in  securing  materials,  had  for  a  long  time  overcome  the  diffi- 
culty, and  wool  was  brought  in  quantities  from  the  grazing  countries 
to  the  north,  as  it  is  to  some  extent  to-day.  When  the  new  system 
supplanted  the  old,  cheaper  materials  were  introduced.     Hemp  and 


*  •*  Take,  for  Instance,  such  a  common  thing  as  the  black  dye  of  Kanchipuram,  and  the  red  dye 
of  Madura  in  the  Madras  presidency,  which  was  famous  throughout  the  world.  European  black  has 
taken  the  place  of  the  one,  and  that  rich  russet  red  which  delighted  the  eye  of  the  painter  is  replaced 
by  magenta." — Georgiana  Kingscott:  '•  Tht  Decline  of  Taste  in  Indian  Art" 

a54 


INDIA 

jute  took  the  place  of  cotton  in  the  foundations,  and  the  general 
decadence  of  the  native  product  was  complete.  In  an  article  in  The 
Nineteenth  Century,  in  1891,  on  "The  Decline  of  Taste  in  Indian 
Art,"  Georgiana  Kingscote,  speaking  of  the  spontaneous  native  indus- 
try, says: 

"  At  one  time  there  were  more  than  two  hundred  houses  where 
there  are  now  twos  and  threes,  and  the  famished  inhabitants  cannot 
even  afford  to  keep  a  stock  of  carpets  on  hand,  and  as  soon  as  one  is 
finished  are  only  too  ready  to  sell  it,  at  a  loss  even,  simply  as  a  means 
of  subsistence ;  and  the  trade  is  at  such  a  low  ebb  that  if  you  want  an 
Indian  carpet  you  must  advance  the  money,  and  wait  until  they  can 
get  through  it,  as  they  cannot  afford  to  employ  many  workers. 

"The  coloring  of  the  Indian  carpets  originally  came  from  Persia, 
and  these  colors,  especially  reds  and  blues,  were  as  beautiful  as  those 
of  that  country  still  are.  Now,  unfortunately,  the  revival  of  carpet 
manufacture  is  principally  carried  on  in  the  jails,  under  English  super- 
vision, and  the  patterns  are  decidedly  English,  and  the  texture  thick 
like  English  pile,  thus  encouraging  the  loss  of  that  extremely  fine 
work  peculiar  to  the  Persian  carpets.  Here,  again,  magenta,  being  a 
cheap  English  color,  plays  a  great  part,  and  spoils  the  harmony  of 
the  coloring.  One  drop  of  water  is  enough  to  spoil  the  carpet  by 
making  the  magenta  in  it  run  into  the  white  ground.  French  and 
English  machine-made  carpets  and  Brussels  carpets  are  invading 
India,  and  the  carpet  trade  is  sinking  fast  as,  if  not  faster  than,  any 
other." 

The  same  verdict  was  pronounced  at  about  the  same  time,  and  in 
a  much  more  authoritative  manner,  by  Mr.  Robinson.  After  thirty- 
five  years  spent  in  actual  endeavor  to  uphold  and  latterly  to  save  the 
ancient  art  of  carpet- weaving  in  India,  he  closes  in  this  wise  his  review 
of  the  subject:  "Every  encouragement  was  thus  afforded,  and  the 
way  smoothed  for  Trade  versus  Art ;  and  notwithstanding  all  the  pro- 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

tests  made  by  those  who  became  aware  of  threatened  dangers,  the 
manufacture  went  on  in  the  jails,  and  the  art  languished.  It  is  now 
no  exaggeration  to  say  that  in  India,  from  the  Himalayas  to  Cape 
Cormorin,  no  means  exists  for  the  fabrication  of  art  carpets  like  those 
found  in  most  of  the  places  here  enumerated,  nor  can  the  art  element 
in  this  industry  ever  be  resuscitated  until  means  are  found  for  restor- 
ing the  conditions  under  which  the  originals  were  produced." 

It  is  a  new  and,  it  must  be  confessed,  wholly  commercial  manu- 
facture that  has  sprung  up  in  India  on  the  ruins  of  the  art  industry 
which  had  its  splendid  beginnings  with  Akbar.  Availing  themselves 
of  the  fabulously  cheap  labor  to  be  had  without  limit  in  India,  the 
English,  French,  and  latterly  American  houses  have  established  there 
factories  for  the  making  of  rugs  according  to  their  own  conceits,  or 
following  in  some  sort  the  characteristic  designs  of  Persia.  Provisions 
of  the  law  interfere  with  the  importation  of  the  prison-made  fabrics  to 
America,  but  the  output  of  the  prison  looms  at  Lahore,  Agra,  Jabal- 
pur,  Benares,  and  Bangalore  has  fairly  flooded  the  English  market 
for  years,  being  sold  for  a  price  which  defied  all  honest  competition. 
Even  there,  however,  it  is  likely  the  fabrics  will  be  excluded  before  many 
years  shall  have  passed.     But  that,  it  is  plain,  will  not  restore  the  art. 

Two  dealers  in  New  York,  both  interested  in  the  Indian  manu- 
facture, have  summarized  the  whole  matter  in  statements  made  to  the 
writer.  The  first  said :  "  There  is  not  a  rug-making  town  in  all  India 
to-day  where  the  native  patterns  are  used."  The  second  said :  "  An 
effort  was  made  to  introduce  some  new  shades  at  Mirzapur;  but 
although  careful  search  was  made  throughout  all  the  district,  not  a 
dyer  was  found  who  knew  how  to  dye  pukka, —  the  Hindu  term  for 
the  old  vegetable  dyes, —  and  dyers  had  to  be  brought  from  Amritsar 
to  do  the  work."^ 


'   It  is  only  fair  to  say  that  another  well-known  rug  man,  to  whom  these  declarations  were 
repeated,  denied  them  vigorously. 


INDIA 

And  yet  Mirzapur,  up  to  1850,  was  one  of  the  greatest  manufac- 
tories of  art  carpets  in  India. 

The  bold  offers  made  by  certain  India  carpet  concerns,  princi- 
pally in  Amritsar,  of  large  monetary  forfeits  to  any  person  who  shall 
find  evidences  of  aniline  color  in  their  fabrics,  and,  in  fact,  the  personal 
declaration  of  American  dealers  interested  financially  in  the  Indian 
manufactures,  lead  inevitably  to  the  conclusion  that  the  use  of  vege- 
table dyes  is  being  resumed,  or,  at  any  rate,  that  by  some  means 
greater  stability  is  being  sought  in  the  coloring. 

In  many  respects,  however,  the  methods  of  manufacture  now  pur- 
sued are  identical  with  those  in  vogue  in  the  prisons.  The  chief  feat- 
ure of  the  prison  system  which  recommended  it  for  commercial  pur- 
poses was  that  all  the  weavers  employed  upon  a  particular  contract 
were  herded  together,  where  supervision  was  easy  and  obedience  to 
orders  imperative.  Here,  too,  the  personal  equation  was  eliminated. 
Individuality  in  design  was  suppressed,  an  advantage  which  the  con- 
tracting firms  have  never  been  able  to  obtain  in  dealing  with  the 
Turkish,  Persian  or  Caucasian  weavers,  save  in  Sultanabad,  Kirman  and 
Tabriz,  and  more  recently  in  Meshhed,  where  huge  carpets  are  made. 
In  all  the  other  weaving  districts  in  the  Mohammedan  countries 
the  weavers  have  stubbornly  refused  to  work  en  masse,  but  weave 
upon  looms  reared  in  their  own  houses,  where,  free  from  super- 
intendence, they  often  exercise  their  own  ingenuity,  and  give  to  the 
fabrics  a  touch  now  and  then  of  the  true  Oriental  character,  which 
accords  so  ill  with  the  demands  of  the  Western  firms. 

This  lesson  was  learned  from  the  jail  system,  and  although  in 
some  towns  of  India  home  looms  are  retained,  the  weavers  of  the 
great  carpet  centres  work  in  droves,  within  walls  and  under  guard. 
They  are  searched  when  they  quit  the  workshop,  and  upon  the  com- 
pletion of  the  carpet  every  atom  of  the  wool  remaining  from  its  con- 
struction must  be  returned  to  the  owners.     Under  the  old  system  the 

257 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

workmen  and  workwomen  kept  these  leavings,  and  used  them  in 
other  and  altogether  different  fabrics,  to  effect  the  variant  note  so 
potent  in  warding  off  ill  luck. 

In  India  the  women  do  no  weaving.  The  great  majority  of  the 
weavers  are  boys,  ranging  in  age  from  six  to  fifteen  years,  and  most 
of  them  under  twelve.  They  are  under  the  absolute  sway  of  the 
native  masters,  a  sort  of  padrones,  and  when,  from  one  reason  or 
another,  the  "  boss  weaver  "  leaves  a  factory,  he  takes  his  entire  follow- 
ing with  him.  This  is  an  altogether  uncomfortable  state  of  things 
for  the  firms  carrying  on  the  business,  since  in  places  like  Amritsar 
the  defection  of  a  large  body  of  these  tiny  toilers  can  cause  incalculable 
inconvenience  and  delay.  The  maximum  wage  of  one  of  these  child 
weavers  is  about  five  cents  a  day.  Skilled  adults  work  by  the  thou- 
sand stitches,  and  a  great  day's  earning  is  about  twenty-five  or  thirty 
cents. 

What  has  been  said  in  another  chapter  on  the  transportation  of 
designs  from  one  part  of  the  Orient  to  another,  and  their  adoption 
into  other  ornament  systems,  applies  in  its  fullest  force  to  India. 
Considering  the  illimitable  conservatism  of  the  Hindu,  it  is  difficult 
to  understand  how  the  Mohammedan  designs  could  have  crowded  out 
those  of  the  earlier  races,  while  the  language,  religion,  and  social  cus- 
toms remain.  All  through  the  north  of  India  the  Persian  forms  were 
used  almost  exclusively,  though  taking  on  a  rich  ornamental  char- 
acter which  even  in  the  most  finished  of  the  Persianized  products  sug- 
gested the  native,  half-barbarian  splendor.  In  the  south  of  India 
there  were  retained  many  of  the  old  creations ;  but  even  these  were 
of  the  same  ancient  origin  as  the  Persian,  although  altered  by  cen- 
turies of  native  Indian  usage.  They  had  been  brought  into  India 
by  Aryan  invasion  further  back  even  than  the  time  of  Darius,  and 
thus,  after  long  separation,  the  currents  of  the  primitive  and  univer- 
sal symbolism  were  again  united. 

2S8 


INDIA 

The  treatment  in  many  India  carpets  of  the  eighties  was  little  more 
than  a  burlesque;  but  pieces  made  later  on  contract  looms  preserve 
with  comparative  fidelity  the  details  of  the  Persian  rugs  from  which 
they  were  copied.  In  the  prison  weaving  both  kinds  of  knots  were 
used,  and  in  the  cheap  grades  a  simple  twist,  which  is  no  knot  at 
all,  but  merely  a  turning  of  the  yarn  around  the  warp,  depending 
wholly  upon  the  tension  of  the  weft  to  hold  it.  It  must  have  been 
rugs  of  such  workmanship  which  prompted  Sir  George  Birdwood  to 
say  in  his  "  Industrial  Arts  of  India,"  in  1884:  "The  foundation,  as 
now  scamped,  is  quite  insufficient  to  carry  the  heavy  pile  which  is  a 
feature  of  this  make,  and  is,  moreover,  so  short  in  the  staple  as  to  be 
incapable  of  bearing  the  tension  even  of  the  process  of  manufacture. 
Jabalpur  carpets  often  reach  this  country,  which  will  not  bear  sweep- 
ing or  even  unpacking.  I  know  of  two  which  were  shaken  to  pieces 
in  the  attempt  to  shake  the  dust  out  of  them  when  first  unpacked. 
The  designs  once  had  some  local  character,  but  have  lost  it  during 
the  last  five  years." 

There  are  among  the  Indian  carpets  of  to-day,  nevertheless, 
some  fabrics  which  are  stout,  soundly  made,  quite  well  dyed,  and, 
being  copies  of  good  spontaneous  Persian  designs,  are  meritorious  in 
that  regard.  It  is  not  hard  to  distinguish  the  wheat  from  the  chaff. 
In  selecting  from  among  these  carpets  there  is  probably  no  rule  other 
than  of  personal  preference  in  design,  supplemented  by  the  general 
requirements  as  to  material  and  texture,  and  the  customary  tests  for 
solidity  of  color. 

Amritsar. —  Reference  has  already  been  made  to  the  natural 
qualification  which  tends  to  make  Amritsar  a  home  of  carpet-weaving. 
Most  of  its  water  is  of  good  quality,  and  it  is  near  to  the  course  of 
wool-supply.  In  addition  it  has  within  easy  reach  the  Kashmir  dis- 
trict, where  skilful  dyers  and  weavers  became  plentiful  after  the  deca- 
dence of  the  shawl  manufacture.     It  is,  moreover,  a  centre  of  trade, 

3$9 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

and  one  of  the  chief  stations  on  the  Punjab  railway.     Thus  its  manu- 
factures find  easy  transportation  to  the  coast. 

In  a  system  so  purely  commercial  as  is  the  Indian  carpet-making 
of  to-day,  all  these  are  ample  reasons  for  the  general  transfer  of  fac- 
tories from  other  parts  of  the  empire  to  Amritsar.  For  a  long  time  it 
was  the  custom  of  the  Kashmir  shawl-weavers  to  journey  down  to 
Amritsar  to  weave  shawls  during  the  winter  months.  In  this  manner 
the  Kashmir  methods  were  brought  into  vogue  here.  The  manufac- 
ture of  heavy  carpets  for  the  trade  has  outgrown  the  old  industry. 
Many  of  the  Kashmir  customs  have  been  abandoned,  but  one  impor- 
tant feature  still  prevails.  A  rug,  or  pattern,  is  divided  into  sections, 
as  many  as  there  are  weavers  at  work  upon  the  looms,  and  in  a  book 
are  written  down  in  Kashmiri  characters  all  the  stitches  in  each  sec- 
tion, with  the  colors,  and  the  exact  sequence  in  which  they  must  be 
put  in,  from  the  beginning  to  the  finishing  of  the  rug.  Each  weaver 
has  a  number  corresponding  to  that  of  the  section  upon  which  he 
is  employed.  It  is  the  task  of  one  boy  to  read  off  these  stitches,  day 
in  and  day  out,  through  the  making  of  many  carpets.  While  he 
reads,  the  loom  masters,  each  having  three  or  sometimes  four  looms 
under  their  control,  go  about  and  inspect  the  work,  for  errors.  When 
such  are  found  the  weavers  are  compelled  to  pull  out  all  the  faulty 
knots  and  replace  them.  There  are  many  thousands  of  men  and 
boys  employed  in  the  carpet  industry  of  Amritsar,  counting  wool- 
handlers,  dyers  and  weavers,  and  the  work  of  so  many  facile  hands 
makes  up  a  mighty  carpet  export. 

W.  S.  Caine,  in  his  book  on  "Picturesque  India,"  says:  "Some 
of  the  finest  carpets  in  India  are  woven  at  Amritsar.  One  dealer  just 
inside  the  first  gate,  entered  from  the  railway  station  and  hotels,  em- 
ploys from  seven  hundred  to  one  thousand  hands  in  carpet-weaving, 
at  a  wage  of  from  three  to  six  annas  per  day  [nine  to  eighteen  cents]. 
He  works  mainly  for  three  or  four  great  London  firms,  and  I  have 

a6o 


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Plate  XXIV.    Samarkand 

16.5  X  7.2 

Loaned  by  Mr.  William  McLaren  Bristol 

The  old-time  weavers  of  Samarkand  made  strenuous  effort  to  attain  the 
Persian  profuseness  in  design,  but  as  has  been  set  forth  in  the  text,  were  ham- 
pered by  Chinese  influence,  which  dictated  the  use  of  the  heavy  round  or 
octagonal  medallion  in  the  field,  and  of  the  old  Mongol  religious  emblems. 
The  discovery  of  this  old  and  in  every  way  interesting  carpet  was  a  piece  of 
good  fortune.  Here,  it  will  be  seen,  the  entire  space  in  the  field  is  covered  with 
repetitions  of  the  Chinese  cloud  band  (compare  Plate  I),  but  the  arrangement  is 
in  rows,  like  that  of  the  vases  in  that  purest  of  Persian  designs,  the  old  Kirman 
shown  in  Plate  XVIII.  Further  concession  to  the  Persian — a  sign  manual,  in 
fact — is  found  in  the  minute  pear  figures  thrown  in  at  intervals  throughout  the 
ground,  apparently  without  rhyme  or  reason.  The  Turkoman  elements  are 
plain  here,  too,  in  the  broad,  striped  webbing  at  the  ends,  and  the  border  de- 
signs, which  are  merely  the  tarantula  and  scorpion  devices,  with  a  suggestion 
of  the  tree. 


one  t! 


INDIA 

seen  no  worthier  results  in  any  of  the  carpet  manufactories  I  have 
visited  up  and  down  India." 

The  output  of  the  Amritsar  looms,  therefore,  is  perhaps  the  best 
by  which  to  judge  the  present-day  carpet  product  of  India.  That 
part  of  it  which  is  handled  by  American  firms  is  probably  the 
best  which  these  great  factories  have  to  show,  better,  no  doubt, 
by  reason  of  the  fact  that  the  agents  dealing  directly  with  India  can 
and  do  dictate  concerning  designs,  colors  and  all  the  points  of  con- 
struction. But  the  whole  system  is  distinctly  commercial,  and  for  the 
general  stock  the  same  patterns  are  produced  in  all  grades,  ranging 
from  three  knots  by  three  to  twelve  by  twelve,  to  suit  the  needs  of  the 
buyer.  There  is  a  corresponding  variation  in  the  quality  of  the  dyes 
and  the  workmanship,  and  some  of  the  staple  stuff  would  discredit  the 
tepee  of  a  Piute.  The  designs  are  taken  chiefly  from  the  Persian, 
and  the  Feraghan  seems  to  be  a  favorite.  Others  are  copied  in  the 
most  impossible  of  colors  from  huge,  glaring  designs  of  English  car- 
pets. Many  small  mats  are  made,  which  suffer  sadly  by  contrast  with 
even  the  poorest  of  the  yesteklik  which  come  from  Anatolia. 

In  the  lower  grades,  whether  of  mats  or  larger  pieces,  there  is 
seldom  any  effort  at  artistic  finishing  of  the  ends,  an  enormously 
heavy  and  badly  bungled  overcasting  taking  the  place  of  the  attrac- 
tive fringes  which  adorn  the  ends  of  the  Turkish,  Persian  and  Cau- 
casian rugs.  It  must  be  said  for  Amritsar,  however,  that  since  it 
became  the  factory  of  the  better  class  of  whole  carpets  for  American 
firms,  the  concerns  dealing  in  the  wretched  low-grade  fabrics  just  re- 
ferred to  have  transferred  their  manufacture  to  other  towns,  where 
labor  can  be  had  more  cheaply ;  so  that  Amritsar  probably  merits 
the  good  word  spoken  by  Mr.  Caine. 

The  best  grade  of  carpets  made  here  are  what  are  known  as 
"pushmina,"  from  the  fact  that  they  are  made  o{  pas  him  or  pus  him, 
the  fine  wool  found  next  to  the  skin  of  the  sheep.     Some  of  these,  in 

261 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

which  closeness  of  texture  is  aimed  at,  have  a  silk  warp.  The  stitches 
are  sometimes  as  many  as  fourteen  by  fourteen.  Raw-silk  rugs  are 
also  made  in  Amritsar,  but  the  manufacture  has  not  met  with  great 
success. 

Kashmir. —  Since  we  are  dealing  with  floor-coverings,  there  is 
little  to  be  said  about  Kashmir.  Its  fame  was  won  in  the  manufac- 
ture of  shawls,  and  although  some  carpets  were  made  there  of  old, 
they  showed  in  colors,  materials,  patterns  and  workmanship,  even  at 
the  best  period  of  their  development,  the  effect  of  propinquity  to  the 
shawl  industry.  Sir  George  Birdwood  describes  one  of  the  older 
examples  as  having  "  grounds  of  pale  yellow  and  rose  color,  and  floral 
patterns  in  half-tones  of  a  variety  of  colors.  The  borders  were  weak 
and  not  distinct  from  the  centre,  but  the  coloring  and  general  effect 
were  serene  and  pleasing." 

"  Its  peculiarities,"  Mr.  Robinson  says,  "  were  in  some  degree  due 
to  the  use  of  shawl  wool  for  the  fabrics,  and  to  a  method  of  arranging 
designs  quite  its  own.  The  width  of  the  borders  was  nearly  as  exag- 
gerated as  in  those  of  Tanjore  in  the  south  of  India,  but  the  filling 
of  the  design  differed  from  them  by  being  minute  in  proportion  to 
the  space  occupied.  The  scale  of  coloring  also  distinguished  it  from 
other  manufactures  and  was  probably  the  effect  of  chemical  properties 
in  the  water." 

Of  the  modern  fabrics  of  Kashmir,  which,  though  they  are  quite 
different,  still  retain  some  peculiarities  which  had  their  birth  in  the 
shawl-making,  nothing  can  be  said  which  has  not  been  said  of  other 
varieties  of  Indian  goods.  The  general  run  of  the  staple  product  is 
poor,  but  the  carpets  turned  out  to  order  for  English  and  American 
firms  are  of  a  better  style  and  design,  and  where  the  selection  of 
materials  is  made  by  the  Western  agents,  and  the  contractors  are  fast 
bound  by  stipulation,  fairly  good  fabrics  are  produced. 

Mirzapur. —  There  is  probably  no  city  in  India  whose  carpet  in- 

262 


INDIA 

dustry  has  known  a  more  extraordinary  series  of  ups  and  downs  than 
has  that  of  Mirzapur.  Situated  on  the  south  bank  of  the  Ganges,  it 
is  in  the  centre  of  the  richest  and  most  cultured  part  of  India.  It  is 
near  neighbor  to  Benares  and  Allahabad ;  it  is  on  the  railway,  and  is 
but  half  as  far  as  Amritsar  from  Calcutta.  It  is  fairly  populous,  has 
extensive  manufactures  of  brasswork,  and  is  a  still  famous  mart  for 
cotton  and  grain.  The  Hindu  element  is  strong  here,  and  the  city 
presents,  on  the  river-front,  some  remarkable  Hindu  temples.  This 
atmosphere  had  undoubtedly  much  to  do  with  the  designs  of  the  old 
Mirzapur  carpets,  which,  before  English  commercial  manipulation 
began,  showed  a  pronounced  Hindu  character  in  distinction  from  the 
Persian  forms.  Instead  of  any  manner  of  floral  diapers,  they  displayed 
medallions,  within  which  all  the  floral  forms  were  traced. 

It  was  only  a  Httle  while  after  the  introduction  of  the  Mirzapur 
carpets  into  England  that  English  firms  began  to  lower  the  quality 
of  them.  Efforts  to  restore  it  scored  desultory  success,  and  as  late  as 
1867  the  fabrics  maintained  a  fairly  good  reputation.  The  jail  sys- 
tem, coupled  with  precipitate  trading,  finally  finished  them.  The 
texture  became  coarse,  the  materials  poor,  the  colors  of  such  sort  as 
has  been  indicated  in  the  introductory  part  of  this  chapter. 

The  later  development  did  something  to  redeem  the  industry,' 
but  merely  to  the  end  of  securing  a  satisfactory  workshop,  and 
probably  not  with  any  view  of  again  producing  the  fabrics  as  they 
were  before  the  great  era  of  decadence  began.  The  modern  Mirza- 
pur carpets  show  round,  floral  figures,  with  dark  red  as  the  prevailing 
color,  usually  arranged  in  rows  upon  a  pale  yellow  or  cream-colored 
ground.  Dark  red,  almost  maroon,  prevails  also  in  the  borders, 
which  carry  some  arrangement  of  the  pear  pattern  resembling  the 
main  borders  of  the  Khorassans,  or  else  a  repetition  of  the  floral  forms 
found  in  the  body  of  the  rug,  with  a  connecting  vine. 

The  wool   for  the   present-day  Mirzapur  carpets  comes  chiefly 

263 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

from  the  western  part  of  Rajputana  and  is  of  an  inferior  sort.  The 
great  endeavor  on  the  part  of  both  native  and  foreign  firms  engaged 
in  the  manufacture  has  been  to  secure  wool  which  would  give  better 
results  when  wrought,  and  yet  come  within  the  "near"  rates  they 
were  willing  to  pay  in  their  desire  to  keep  the  fabrics  down  to  "  com- 
petition prices,"  and  at  the  same  time  widen  the  margin  of  profit. 
One  American  agent  tried  bringing  wool  from  Beluchistan,  but  the 
local  dyers  could  do  nothing  with  it.  They  treat  the  wool  with  lime, 
too,  to  give  it  brilliancy,  which  is  only  adding  another  ill. 

Lahore. —  The  British  capital  of  the  Punjab  is  one  of  the  places 
where  prison  weaving  has  been  done.  The  central  jail  there  has  held 
as  many  as  two  thousand  prisoners,  and  in  addition  there  are  district 
and  female  jails,  a  thug  jail  and  a  "school  of  industry,"  in  all  of 
which  both  woollen  and  cotton  carpets  have  been  made.  The  manu- 
facture of  the  old-fashioned  fabrics  held  on  there  with  much  tenacity, 
nevertheless,  considering  the  proximity  of  so  much  that  tended  to 
demoralize  them. 

The  Lahore  carpets  were  among  the  first  of  the  Indian  products 
to  attract  commercial  attention  in  England,  and  the  East  India  Com- 
pany's vessels  took  a  great  number  of  the  fabrics  home  to  be  sold. 
Records  of  the  company  indicate  that  even  in  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury, while  the  impulse  starting  from  Akbar  must  still  have  been 
strong,  extremely  good  carpets  were  by  no  means  so  plenty  as  may 
be  supposed.  One  agent,  writing  in  i6i 7,  reports  the  purchase  at 
Agra  of  thirty  fine  Lahore  carpets.  In  a  letter  written  only  a  short 
time  afterward,  he  says:  "  It  requires  a  long  time  to  get  well-chosen 
carpets.  True  Lahore  carpets  are  not  so  suddenly  to  be  gotten." 
This  declaration  seems  to  have  been  in  answer  to  some  complaint 
that  he  had  not  sent  larger  consignments,  and  indicates  how  quickly 
the  carpets  caught  the  British  fancy. 

Despite  the  debauchery  of  the  product  by  the  jail  system,  a  cer- 

264. 


INDIA 

tain  amount  of  weaving,  following  tolerably  well  the  old  models, 
seems  to  have  been  done  in  Lahore  down  to  a  recent  time.  Even 
within  the  past  two  or  three  years  a  few  examples  of  considerable 
age  have  been  offered  for  sale  in  New  York,  and  taken  quickly  even 
at  the  high  price  demanded. 

Weaving  outside  the  jails  was  extensively  revived  here  at  one 
time,  and  though  the  fabrics  were  in  nowise  equal  to  the  old  ones,  some 
of  them,  woven  in  the  Persian  fashion,  were  fairly  good.  The  prevail- 
ing design  is  a  Persian  pear  pattern  for  the  fields,  arranged  like 
that  of  the  Herat  or  Saraband,  and  a  border  in  which  the  Greek 
elements  are  predominant.  There  are  seldom  more  than  forty  knots 
to  the  square  inch. 

Agra. — Agra,  whither  travellers  journey  to  gaze  upon  the  beauty 
of  the  Taj  Mahal,  has  its  carpet  industry  too — an  industry  the  early  his- 
tory of  which  Mr.  Robinson  recounts  in  this  wise :  "  The  Indus  valley 
had  always  obtained  rugs  from  the  neighboring  Afghans  on  the  north 
and  the  Beluchee  tribes  on  the  south  of  the  river ;  but  as  the  Moham- 
medan power  became  established  in  central  India,  the  necessity  was 
found  for  local  manufacture  of  carpets  too  large  to  be  carried  by 
camels  or  even  by  elephants.  Thus  Agra,  Jhansi  and  other  places 
east  became  seats  of  the  manufacture." 

In  point  of  size  and  thickness  the  Agra  carpets  of  to-day  are  fit 
successors  to  those  of  the  olden  time.  They  are  of  enormous  weight 
and  solidity.  The  designs  are  similar  to  those  common  in  the  time  of 
Mongol  ascendancy,  the  cone  forms  playing  an  important  part.  For 
a  long  time  after  the  establishment  of  the  weaving  in  jails  and  the 
industrial  school,  the  carpets  were  nearly  all  in  a  monotone  of  two 
colors,  green  or  blue,  with  pale  cream  color.  More  recently  the  use 
of  browns  and  purples  was  begun.  The  central  field  in  the  later  rugs 
presents  an  angular  form  of  some  Mohammedan  device,  and  the  bor- 
der, very  often,  the  transverse  arrangement  of  the  pear  shape  spoken 

*65 


ORIENTAL     RUGS 

of  as  being  a  feature  of  certain  Khorassans.  In  the  jails,  where  the 
manufacture  is  still  carried  on,  cotton  carpets  are  made,  thick  and 
heavy  like  the  woollen  ones. 

Allahabad. —  This  beautiful  and  thriving  city,  at  the  junction  of 
the  Ganges  and  Jumna,  is  a  Hindu  stronghold,  but  it  is  the  centre  as 
well  of  the  most  thoroughly  British  influence  in  the  realm.  Although 
not  one  of  the  most  important  weaving  cities,  there  are  exported  from 
it  a  great  many  carpets,  similar  in  almost  every  respect  to  those  of 
Agra.  They  range  in  texture  from  forty-eight  to  possibly  one  hun- 
dred knots  to  the  square  inch. 

Masulipatam. —  It  was  here  that  the  first  British  settlement  was 
established  in  1620.  Even  then  the  city,  though  small,  was  renowned 
for  its  fabrics.  From  fine,  closely  woven,  beautifully  designed  rugs, 
they  have,  under  the  sweat-shop  system,  taken  on  the  cheap  character 
of  much  of  the  Indian  output.  These  rugs  were  at  one  time  widely 
sold  in  the  United  States,  but  have  lost  caste  since  the  large  importa- 
tion of  other  and  better  fabrics  began. 

Jaipur  or  Jeypore. —  This,  the  capital  of  the  state  of  the  same 
name,  is  the  principal  commercial  centre  of  Rajputana.  It  stands  in 
a  plain,  surrounded  on  all  sides  save  one  by  hills  which  the  ancient 
rulers  made  sites  of  remarkable  fortifications.  Under  British  domin- 
ion the  city  has  progressed  greatly-  It  has  fine  paved  streets,  gas 
lighting,  hospitals,  dispensaries,  almshouses  and  schools,  and  a  famous 
observatory,  built  in  1728.  The  carpets  woven  here  copy  the  designs 
found  chiefly  in  the  rugs  of  eastern  and  middle  Persia.  They  nearly 
always  present  the  cypress-tree,  and  also  many  animal  forms,  laid 
upon  ground  of  dark  red,  blue  or  ivory  white.  The  borders  have  a 
swaying-vine  pattern,  with  the  customary  floral  adjuncts. 

Miscellaneous.  —  In  Jabalpur,  Ahmedabad,  Ellore,  Poonah, 
Delhi,  Bijapur,  Madras  and  Jamu,  all  seats  at  one  time  of  considera- 
ble carpet  manufacture,  fabrics  are  still  turned  out,  but  they  are  not 

^66 


INDIA 

imported  in  any  great  number  into  this  country.  Velvet  carpets  from 
Benares,  Patna  and  Murshidabad  once  had  some  fame.  Tanjore, 
Warangal,  Multan  and  Hyderabad  all  produced  remarkable  rugs 
under  the  old  dispensation,  but  little  or  no  trace  of  their  industry 
remains. 


INDEX 


Afghan-Bokhara  rugs,  description,  235-238 

Afghanistan,  native  name  for  Khorassan, 
225;  nomad  rugs  of,  237  ;  rugs,  see  Bo- 
khara rugs ;  wool-growing  in,  34 

Agassiz,  on  Greek  key  pattern,  quoted,  70 

Agra  rugs,  265 

Ahmedabad  rugs,  266 

Aidin,  "Smyrna"  rugs  made  in,  132 

Aiyin  rugs,  225 

Akbar,  Emperor,  252 

Ak-Hissar  mohair  rugs,  39;    description, 

AUzarin,  decline  in  value  of,  27 

Allahabad  rugs,  266 

Amritsar,  257 ;  rugs,  description,  259 

Anatolia,  method  of  carding  wool  in,  38 

Anatolian,  rugs,  35 ;  brown  shades  in,  54 ; 
description,  142;  mats  (Yestiklik),  de- 
scription, 95,  141-143 

Angora  goat's-hair,  34,  39 

Anilines.     See  Dyes 

Animal  forms  in  Bokhara  rugs,  228.  232; 
in  Genghis  rugs,  130;  in  Meshhed  rugs, 
224 

Apple  design  (Sihbih),  76 

Arabic  influence,  in  Djushaghan  rugs, 
205;  in  Kir-Shehr  rugs,  139 

Ardebil,  mosque  carpet  of,  171 

Arras,  French  factories  at,  19 


Arshin,  Persian  unit  of  measurement,  24 
Asia   Minor,   antique   rugs   of,  copied   in 
Tabriz,  172;  mode  of  cleansing  wool  in, 

Assyria,  rug  designs  in,  15 
Asur-Banipal,  15 
Aubusson,  factories  at,  19 
Azerbijan,  166;  rugs,  description,  167 


B 


Babylonian  designs.     See  Assyria 

Babylonica  peristromata,  16 

Baghdad,  fabrics  of,  15 

Bakhshis  rugs,  description,  175 

Baluk-Hissar,  fair  at,  22 

Bandhor  rugs,  origin  of  name,  6 

Barber-pole  stripe,  in  Farsistan  rugs,  no; 
in  Kabistan  rugs,  no;  in  Konieh  rugs, 
137;  in  Laristan  rugs,  no;  in  Mosul 
rugs,  128;  in  Yomud  rugs,  no,  234 

Barter,  system  of,  23 

Basra.     See  Bassorah 

Bassorah,  school  of  painting,  1 2 

Beaumont,  A.  de,  "  Les  Arts  Decoratifs  en 
Orient  et  en  France,"  quoted :  on  the  su- 
periority of  antique  art  products,  14 

Beauvais,  factories  at,  19 

Bellew,  Dr.,  "  From  the  Indus  to  the  Ti- 
gris," quoted:  on  Khorassan  rugs,  220; 
on  shrine  at  Meshhed,  223 


269 


INDEX 


Beluchistan  rugs,  description,  238-241 ;  re- 
ciprocal trefoil  design  in,  119 

Benjamin,  S.  G.  W.,  "  Persia  and  the  Per- 
sians," quoted:  on  lost  art  of  making 
Persian  blue,  53 

Berdelik  (hangings),  description,  96 

Bergamo  rugs,  description,  154-157 ;  mode 
of  selling,  133 

Beshir  rugs,  235 

Bibikabad  rugs,  201 

Bible,  allusion  to  carpets  in,  17 

Bijapur  rugs,  266 

Bijar  rugs.     S^g  Sarakhs 

*'  Bilooz"  rugs,  231 

Bird  forms,  in  Bokhara  rugs,  228;  in  Gen- 
ghis rugs,  130;  in  Ispahan  rugs,  202; 
in  Kazak  rugs,  124;  in  Tabriz  rugs,  172 ; 
in  Teheran  rugs,  202 

Birdwood,  Sir  George,  "  Industrial  Arts  of 
India,"  quoted :  on  decadence  of  India 
rugs,  259;  on  irregularities  of  design, 
cited,  76;  on  Kashmir  rugs,  quoted, 
262;  on  rugs  as  works  of  art,  cited,  14; 
on  origin  of  the  pear  design,  quoted,  69 ; 
on  Swastika,  quoted,  70 ;  on  symbolism, 
in  designs,  quoted,  56;  on  tree  forms 
quoted,  66 

Bishop,  Mrs.  I.  B.,  "Journeys  in  Persia 
and  Kurdistan,"  quoted:  on  deteriora- 
tion of  Persian  rugs,  7 ;  on  Persian 
rugs,  quoted,  173;  on  silk  rugs,  quoted, 

97 
Bokhara  khilims,  250 

Bokhara  prayer  rugs,  goat's-fleece  used  in, 

Bokhara  rugs,  description,  228-233 
Bokhara,  trade  name  for  Tckke  rugs,  226 
Brazil  wood,  53 

Broussa,  "  Smyrna  "  rugs  made  in,  132 
Brugsch,  "  Mythology,"  quoted :  symbolic 

significance  of  color,  56 
Buckthorn  (rhamnus),  54 
Burujird  rugs,  201 
Byzantine  designs,  31 


Byzantium,  art  unaffected  by  Roman  con- 
quest, 18 

C 

Caesarea,  rug  manufactories  in,  143 

Caesarean  rugs.     S^^  Anatolian 

Caine,  W.  S.,  "  Picturesque  India,"  quoted : 

on  Amritsar  rugs,  260 
Cairo,  "  Mecca"  rugs  sold  in,  217 
Camel's-hair,  40 ;  in  Hamadan  rugs,  199 
Campeche  wood,  53 
Carian  rugs.     See  Meles 
Carpets.     See  Rugs 
Caste  system  in  India,  253 
Caucasian,  designs  in  Anatolian  mats,  142 ; 

influence  in  Persian  Kurdistan  rugs,  185 ; 

in  Shiraz  rugs,  213;  in  Yomud  rugs,  234 ; 

rugs,  description,  102;  mode  of  selling, 

133 

Chaldea,  15,  17 

Chemical  dyes.     See  Dyes,  aniline 

Chichi.     See  Tzitzi 

China,  commercial  relations  with  western 
Asia,  23 

Chinese,  art,  Mohammedan  in  essence,  64 ; 
designs,  see  Fretted  designs ;  religious  em- 
blems, 1 2 ;  influence  in  Yarkand  rugs, 
244;  in  Samarkand  rugs,  241 

Christian,  emblems,  absence  of,  30;  weavers, 

3i»  150 
Churchill,  S.  A.  T.,  on  Persian  weavers, 

quoted,  163 
Circassian  rugs.     See  Tcherkess 
Clarke,  C.  P.,  on  carpet  industry,  quoted,  i 
Coal-tar  in  dyes,  44 
Cochineal.     See  Kermes 
Colbert,  looms  established  by,  19 
Collins,  E.  T.,  "  In  the  Kingdom  of  the 
Shah,"  quoted:   on  aniline  dyes,  49;  on 

tests  for  quality  of  a  carpet,  quoted,  89 
Color,  symbolic  significance  of,  56.     Sei 

also  Dyes 
Cone  pattern.     See  Pear 
Constantinople,  rug  names  in,  5,  98 


370 


INDEX 


Cordova,  rug  manufacture  in,  i8,  155 
Cotton,  foundation  for  rugs,  84 
Crown-jewel  pattern.     See  Pear 

D 

Daghestan,  designs  in  Transcaucasian  rugs, 
1 16 ;  proper,  rugs,  description,  104-107 ; 
compared  with  Kabistan,  109,  r  1 1;  com- 
pared with  Karabagh,  117,  119;  com- 
pared with  Mosul,  128;  compared  with 
Shirvan,  122;  description,  103;  Kaba- 
Karaman  sold  as,  140 ;  marketed  in 
Shemakha,  120 

Delhi  rugs,  266 

Demirdji  rugs,  description,  151 

Denotovich,  A.  C,  on  Ladik  rugs,  quoted, 

Derbend  rugs,  compared  with  Kabistan,  Djushaghan  rugs,  205 

109;  description,  107;  Kaba-Karaman  Dyeing,  cost  of,  46 

sold  as,  140  Dyers,  43 ;  hereditary  calling  of,  44 

Designs,  absence  of  Christian  emblems,  30;  Dyes,  aniline,  7,  27, 44, 48, 49,  75, 152, 165; 
antiquity  of,    13;    Apple  (Sihbih),   76;         destroyed  in  Persia,  162;  in  Anatolian 


no,  112,  128,  130,  147,  X58,  183,  188, 
198,  203,  213,  221,  223,  225;  period  ot 
climax  in,  58 ;  reciprocal  trefoil,  1 12, 1 18, 
119,  125,  128;  registration  of,  78;  re- 
hgious  significance  of,  13,  21,  80;  repro- 
duction of,  85;  rosette,  65,  74;  sacred 
tree  between,  two  guardian  beasts,  16; 
Sardar,  7 5 f  Shah  Abbas,  74,  166;  star, 
108,  109,  128;  supplied  Dy  Western 
firms,  78,  163;  symbolism  of,  56,  69; 
tarantula,  125;  tree,  66,  96,  112,  115, 
147, 203 ;  turunji^  76;  woven  in  sections, 
86 

Diaper  design,  fish  pattern  used  as,  15; 
in  Hamadan  rugs,  200 ;  in  Persian  rugs, 
166 ;  in  Sehna  rugs,  183 ;  in  Djushaghan 
rugs,  205;  medaUions  in,  166 

Djijims,  15.     See  also  Bokhara  khilims 


barber-pole,  no,  128,  137,  234;  cloud 
band,  1 14 ;  consistency  in,  61 ;  decadence 
of,  58;  derivation  of,  62,  65;  diaper,  15, 
67,  i66,  183,  200;  floral,  96,  117,  122, 


rugs,  143;  in  Ghiordes  modems,  148; 
in  Kazaks,  124;  in  Kurdistans,  181; 
in  Meles,  158;  in  Persians,  165;  in 
Saruks,  204 ;  in  Smyrnas,  144 


128,  129,  137,  145,  149,  169,  179,  180,     Dyes,  composition  of,  47,  52,  53;   deca- 


dence of  Indian,  254 ;  effect  on  yarn,  47 ; 
mordants  for,  48;  in  Tabriz  ~ugs,  172; 
Indian,  256;  Novi  Varos,  51;  solvent 
properties  of  water  for  mixing,  44,  45, 
138 


188,  202,  209,  219,  242;  floral,  deriva- 
tion of,  17;  distribution  and  modification, 
4,  63,  73 ;  for  weavers,  86 ;  fretted,  64, 
69,  241,  244;  geometrical,  15,  17,  63, 
104,  108,  120,  124,  128,  129,  240;  Guli 
Hinnai,  75,  195;  Herati  (fish),  67,  183,  « 

191, 194,  203,  221,  224,  237  ;  India,  258; 

irregularities  in,  56,  76 ;  Italian  influence     "  Eastern  Carpets,"  Robins«  ;i,  Vincent,  34, 
on,  19,  59;  knop-and-flower,  66;  latch-         39,  119,  238,  243 
hook,  104,  106,  108,  125,  128,  142,  158,     "Eastern    Persia,"    Goldsm  J,  Sir  F.  J., 
234;  leopard  and  deer,  12 ;  lotus,  15, 17,        quoted,  208 
62, 64, 65, 67, 130, 169 ;  made  by  women.     Edict  of  Nantes,  20 
28;  Mina  Khani,  75,   166;   Mir,   197;     Education,  27 

nomad,  consistency  of,  60;  not  a  means     Egypt,  mysteries  of,  13;  rug-making  in.  \\, 
of  identification,  45;   painted,  86;  pal-         15.  17 
mette,  65,  74,  130;  pear,  63,  68,  109,     Eleanor  of  Castile,  20 

«7i 


INDEX 


Elizabetpol,  130 

EUore  rugs,  266 

England,  rug  manufacture  in,  20 

Enile  rugs,  texture,  152 

European  machinery,  25,  38 


Fairs,  22 

Farsistan  wool,  34 

Feraghan  rugs,  67, 68,  75 ;  description,  194- 
196;  likeness  to  Sehna,  184;  loose  knot- 
ting in  modems,  89 ;  restoration  of,  8 ; 
sold  as  Khorassans,  222 

Figures.     See  Designs 

Filik,  40,  127 ;  in  Hamadan  rugs,  199 

Fish  pattern.     See  Herat 

Flame  pattern.     See  Pear 

Floral  designs,  17,  63;  in  Genghis  rugs, 
129;  in  Ghiordes  antiques,  145 ;  in  Kara- 
baghs,  117  ;  in  Kara  Dagh,  i8o;  in  Ker- 
manshahs,  188;  in  Khorassans,  219;  in 
Kirmans,  202,  209 ;  in  Koniehs,  127  ;  in 
Kulah  prayer  rugs,  149;  in  Mosuls,  128; 
in  Samarkands,  242;  in  Serapis,  179;  in 
Shirvan  antiques,  122;  in  Tabriz,  169; 
in  turbehlik,  96 

Flower  of  the  henna.     See  Guli  Hinnai. 

Fretted  designs,  64,  69,  70;  in  Samarkand 
rugs,  241 ;  in  Yarkand  rugs,  244 

"From  the  Indus  to  the  Tigris,"  Bellew, 
220,  223 

G 

Gallnuts,  54 

Genghis  rugs,  compared  with  Mosul  Kur- 
dish, 131;  description,  129 

Geometrical  designs,  15,  17,  63;  in  Da- 
ghestan  rugs,  104;  in  Derbends,  108;  in 
Genghis,  129;  in  Kazaks,  124;  in  Mo- 
suls, 128;  in  Shirvans,  121;  in  Soumaks, 
120;  in  Turkoman,  240 

Ghiordes,  Demirdji  weavers  in,  151 ,  grade 
names  for  modern  Koniehs,  138 

Ghiordes  rugs,  antique,  border  designs,  64 ; 
compared  with  Konieh,  137  ;  compared 


with  Ladik,  155;  description,  144-148; 

even  trimming  of,  1 1 1 ;  Kulah  designs  in, 

150;  used  as  picture-frames,  145 
Ghiordes  rugs,  modern,  6,  8 ;  description, 

148;  loose  knotting,  89;  substituted  for 

Demirdji,  151 
Goat's-hair,  39;   foundation  for  rugs,  83; 

in  Ak-Hissar  rugs,  157;  in  Kulah  rugs, 

Gobelins,  factories  of  the,  19 

Goldsmid,  Sir  F.  J.,  on  Kirman  rugs,  quoted, 
208 

Goodyear,  Professor,  on  lotus  origin  of  or- 
nament forms,  cited,  62,  64 

Goirevan  rugs,  description,  176-179 

Grade  names  in  Asia  Minor  rugs,  148 

Granada,  rugs  made  in,  20 

Grave  carpets.     See  Turbehlik 

Grazing  districts,  43 

Greek  cross,  30 

Greek  designs,  borrowed  from  Egypt  and 
Assyria,  17 

Greek  key.     See  Fretted  designs 

Guendje  rugs.     See  Genghis 

Guh  Hinnai  design,  7  5;  in  Feraghan  rugs,  195 

Gulistan  rugs,  texture,  153 

Guyard,  S.,  on  Oriental  painting,  cited,  12 

H 

Hamadan  rugs,  40,  78;  Azerbijan  sold  as, 
167  ;  description,  199-201 ,  Herez  known 
as,  175  ;  patterns  for  Genghis,  130 

Hammamlik  (bath  rug),  94 

"  Handbook  of  Anilines,"  Reiman,  44 

Hehbehlik  (saddle-bags),  description,  95; 
Shiraz,  214 

Hemp,  foundation  for  rugs,  84 

Herat,  borders  in  Ispahan  rugs,  203;  in 
Sarakhs,  191 ;  designs  in  Afghanistan 
rugs,  237;  in  Feraghans,  194;  in  Kho- 
rassans, 22;  in  Sehnas,  184 

Herat  rugs,  63,  67;  description,  224,  225; 
medallions  in,  166 


272 


INDEX 


Herek-keui  rugs,  174 

Herez  rugs,  Bakhshis  sold  as,  177  ;  descrip- 
tion, 175 ;  dyes  in,  177  ;  shipped  as  G6re- 
vans,  177 

Herodotus,  17 

Hindustanieh  rugs,  151 

Homer,  17 

I 

"In  the  Kingdom  of  the  Shah,"  Collins, 
E.  T.,  49,  89 

India,  caste  system  in,  253  ;  jail  system  in, 
254;  village  system  in,  253 

India  rugs,  63;  description,  252-255;  un- 
classified, 10 1 

Indigo,  53 

"Industrial  Arts  of  India,"  Sir  G.  Bird- 
wood,  69 

Inely.     S<£  Enile 

Inscriptions  in  Tabriz  rugs,  172 

Iran.     S/'r  Persia 

Iran  rugs,  mistaken  for  Kurdistans,  187 

Iskender  Khan  Coroyantz,  on  the  origin  of 
the  pear  design,  cited,  69 

Ispahan  rugs,  description,  201-205 

J 

Jabalpur,  266 

Jaipur,  266 

James  I.  of  England,  20 

Jamu,  266 

Jeypore.     S<rr  Jaipur 

Jones,  Owen,  on   Chinese  art,  cited,  64; 

on  the  origin  of  designs,  quoted,  65 
Jooshaghan,     Sre'  Djushaghan 
"Journeys  in  Persia  and  Kurdistan,"  Mrs. 

Bishop,  7,  97,  173 


Kaba-Karaman  rugs,  121 ;  description,  139 

Kabistan    rugs,    68;     adherence    to    old 

models,  88 ;  close  trimming,  87 ;  close 

knotting,  89;     compared   with    Mosul, 


127,   128;    description,   108-111;  mar 

keted  in  Shemakha,  120 
Karabagh  rugs,  called  Shemakinski,   121; 

compared  with  Shirvau,  121 ;  degencra 

tion   of  design,   122;  description,   117 

119;    Kaba-Karamans    sold    as,    140. 

model  for  Kazaks,  124 ;  soldas  Geugl..-, 

130 
Kara  Dagh  rugs,  description,  180 
Kara-Geuz  rugs,  200 
Karamania  tribes,  140 
Karmanian,  206 

Kashgar  rugs,  64 ;  description,  243-245 
Kashmir  (Indian)  rugs,  2C2 
"  Kashmir  "  rugs.     Sff  Soumak 
Kayin  rugs.     Sre  Aiyin  rugs 
Kazak,  method  of  weaving,  9 1 ;  odjakUk, 

designs  in,  114 
Kazak  rugs,  compared  with  Tcherkess,  1 14 ; 

description,  123-125;  similarity  to  Dcr- 

bend,  107 
Kermanshah,  187 
Kermanshah  rugs,  description,    187-189; 

Tabriz  rugs  known  as,  168 
Kermes,  52 

Khilims,  20;  description,  248-251 
Khiva-Bokhara  rugs,  230 
Khiva  rugs,  Afghanistan -Bokhara  sold  as, 

236 
Khorassan     rugs,    description,    218-22:?; 

likeness  to  Kirmans,  210 
Kinari  (runners),  6;  in  Kurdistan,  183 
Kingscote,  Georgiana,  "  Decline  of  'l■a^  t . 

in  Indian  Art,"  quoted  :  on  Indian  dyes, 

254 

Kirmanieh  fabrics,  206 

Kirman  (Oushak),  152 

Kirman  rugs,  description,  207-212;  at- 
tributed to  Kermanshah,  187 ;  close  trim- 
ming, 87 ;  close  knotting,  89 ;  imitated 
in  Turkey,  174  ;  Italian  influence  in  de- 
signs, 19;  model  for  Tabriz,  168;  sold 
as  Teheran  and  Ispahan,  202 

Kirman  weavers,  in  Tabriz,  170 


273 


INDEX 


Kir-Shehr,  135 

Kir-Shehr  rugs,  description,  138 

Knop-and-flower  design,  66 

Knot,  close,  89 ;  Ghiordes,  87  ;  loose,  88 ; 
Sehna,  87 

Knots,  beating  of,  91 

Konieh  rugs,  compared  with  Kir-Shehr, 
139;  description,  135-139 

Koran,  27,  30;  quotations  from,  204 

Koultuk  rugs,  description,  192 

Kozan  rugs,  131 

Kuba,  rugs  made  in,  108 

Kulah  mohair  rugs,  39,  150;  likeness  to 
Ak-Hissar  mohairs,  157 

Kulah  rugs,  antique,  border  stripes,  147 ; 
compared  with  Ghiordes,  148 ;  compared 
with  Konieh,  135,  137;  compared  with 
Ladik,  155;  description,  149;  even  clip- 
ping, III 

Kulah  rugs,  modern,  description,  150; 
loose  knotting,  89 

Kurdistan  khilims,  248 

Kurdistan  rugs.  Eastern,  165  ;  description, 
181-187;  different  from  Mosul  Kurds; 
sold  in  Hamadan,  167 

Kurdistan  rugs  (Mosul),  clumsy  weaving 
of,  91;  description,  130;  latch-hook  de- 
signs in,  142 

Kutayah,  rugs  made  in,  153 


Ladik  rugs,  compared  with  Konieh,  135; 
description,  154-157 

Lahore  rugs,  263 

Laodicea.     See  Ladik 

Laristan,  English  trade  name,  214 

Laristan  rugs,  barber-pole  stripe  in,  no 

«'  L'Art  de  I'Asie  Centrale,"  N.  Simakoff, 
125,  228 

Latch -hook  design,  in  Anatolian  mats,  142 ; 
in  Daghestans,  104,  106 ;  in  Derbends, 
108;  in  Kazaks,  125;  in  Meles,  158;  in 
Turkomans,  104;  in  Yomuds,  234 


Leopard  and  deer,  12 

Leroy  Beaulieu,  on  Turkish  imitation  of 
Persian  designs,  134 

"  Les  Arts  Decoratifs  en  Orient  et  en 
France,"  Beaumont,  A.  de,  14 

Life  idea  in  design,  66 

Linen,  foundation  for  rugs,  84 

Looms,  81,  83 

Lotus,  all  ornament  forms  derived  from, 
62,  64 ;  distribution  of,  65 ;  design  bor- 
rowed from  Egypt  and  Assyria,  17;  in 
Genghis  rugs,  130;  in  Tabriz,  169 

Louis  XIV.,  19 

"  Lul6"  rugs,  3,  189;  quality,  182;  Bijars 
the  true,  189 

M 

MacFarlane,  C.  C.,  "  Turkey  and  its  Des- 
tiny," quoted :  on  silk-manufacturing  in 
Broussa,  174;  on  Yuruk  people,  140 

Madder,  52,  54 

Madras  rugs,  266 

Makatlik  (runners),  6;  description,  95 

Makri.     See  Meles 

Malakan.     See  Malgaran 

Malgaran  rugs,  description,  115;  trade 
name  for  Samarkand,  243 

Marriage  customs,  25 

Masulipatam,  266 

Maya  temples,  stone  carvings  on,  13,  17 

Mecca,  21  ;  pilgrimage  to,  216;  rugs,  de- 
scription, 215-218 

MedaUions,  in  Feraghan  rugs,  195 ;  in 
Gorevans,  177;  in  Kirmans,  209;  in 
modem  Persian,  166;  in  Sarakhs,  189; 
in  Serapis,  179;  in  Tabriz,  168 

Meles  rugs,  description,  158 

Melesso.     See  Milassa 

Merv  khilims,  20,  248,  249 

Meshhed,  21 ;  rugs,  description,  223,  224; 
shrine,  222 

Middleton,  Professor  J.  H.,  on  Assyrian  wall 
reliefs,  15;  on  Phoenician  and  archaic 
Greek  designs,  17 


a74 


INDEX 


Milassa,  market  for  Meles  rugs,  158 

Mills,  steam,  38 

Mina  Khani  designs,  75,  166 

Mir  design  in  Saraband  rugs,  197 

Mirzapur  rugs,  description,  262-264 

Mohammedan     restrictions    on    animate 

forms  m  art,  11 
Mongol  influence  in  Niris  rugs,  215 
Mordants,  48 
Morocco,  64 

Mortlake,  Surrey,  looms  at,  20 
Mosul,  126 

Mosul  Kurdish  rugs,  130 
Mosul  rugs,  3,  40,  63;  description,  127- 

129;  why  classed  as  Caucasian,  103 

N 

Namazlik.     See  Prayer  rugs 
Neolithic  Age,  pottery  designs,  17 
Newton,  C.   T.,  on  Greek  key  pattern, 

cited,  69 
Niris  rugs,  description,  214 
Nishapur,  219 

Nomad  tribes  of  the  Caucasus,  112 
Norseland.     See  Scandinavia 
Novi  Varos  rugs,  30 


O 


Odjaklik  (hearth  rug),  29 ;  description,  95 ; 

Kazak,  114;  Konieh,  136 
Ornament  forms,  derivation  of,  62 
Oushak,  dyers,  43;  grade  names  used  for 

modern  Koniehs,  138 
Oushak    rugs,   35 ;    compared    with    big 

Anatolians,  143;  description,  152;  loose 

knotting,  89 
Oustri-Nan,  201 


Palermo,  rug  manufacture  in  twelfth  cen- 
tury, 19 
Palm.     See  Pear 
Parsa,  212 


Pashim,  36 

Patterns.     See  Designs 

Pear,  63;  in  Genghis  rugs,  130;  in  Ghior- 
des,  147 ;  in  Herat,  225 ;  in  Kabistan, 
109;  in  Kermanshah,  188;  in  Meles, 
158;  in  Meshhed,  223;  in  Mosul,  128; 
in  Persian,  109;  in  Saraband,  109,  197; 
in  Sehna,  183;  in  Shiraz,  109,  213;  in 
Teheran,  203 ;  origin,  68 

Peloton  rouge.     See  Filik 

Pergamos.     See  Bergamo 

Persia,  animal  figures  in  designs,  12,  15; 
deterioration  of  rugs  in,  7  ;  bazaars,  7 ; 
berries,  53 ;  blue  in  Kurdistan  rugs, 
181;  lost  art  of  making  blue,  53;  in- 
fluence on  other  rug-making  countries,  60 

"  Persia  and  the  Persians,"  Benjamin,  S.  G. 

W.,  S3 
Persian  khilims  (doru),  250 
Persian  knot.     See  Knot,  Sehna 
Persian  provinces,  best  rugs  made  in,  161, 

163,  165 
Persian  rugs,  160-166, 173;  manner  of  sell- 
ing, 133 ;  reciprocal  trefoil  design  in,  119 
"  Pick,"  Turkish  unit  of  measurement,  24, 

Pile,  substitution  for  primitive  web,  82; 

trimming  of,  89 
Pliny,  16,  93 
Polish  carpets,  119 
Poona,  266 
Prayer  rugs,    15,  36;  Asia  Minor,  145; 

Bokhara,  40,    230;     Daghestan,    106; 

description,  94 ;  Ghiordes,  88;  compared 

with  Kulah,  149;  description,  145-147; 

Kaba-Karaman,  140;  Kulah,  137,  155; 

description,  149;  Tcherkess,  description, 

114;  tree  forms  in,  115,147 
Pushmina  rugs,  261 


Raphael,  Persian  students  under,  19 
Reclus,  on  Kirman  rugs,  quoted,  208 


•7$ 


INDEX 


Reiman,  "  Handbook  of  Anilines,"  quoted : 
on  aniline  dyes,  44 

"  River  loop."     See  Pear 

Robinson,  Vincent,  "  Eastern  Carpets," 
quoted:  on  Afghan  rugs,  238;  on  car- 
pet-weaving in  India,  255 ;  on  Kashmir 
rugs,  262;  on  Polish  carpets,  119;  on 
quality  of  wool,  34,  39;  on  Yarkand 
rugs,  243 

Rochella,  53 

Rock,  Dr.,  on  tree  tradition  of  Middle 
Asia,  quoted,  66 

Rosette,  65,  74 

Roulez.     See  "  Lul6  " 

"  Royal  Bokhara,"  233 

Rugs,  artificial  antiques,  9;  manner  of 
selling  in  Asia  Minor,  133 ;  bibliographi- 
cal material  wanting,  i ;  classification,  63, 
98;  cost  of,  10;  deterioration  of,  6,9, 
161 J  double-faced,  93;  duties  on,  10; 
Egyptian  origin,  14;  finishing  of  sides 
and  ends,  93;  foundation  materials  of, 
84;  identification,  4;  importation,  2,  Si- 
increase  in  popularity,  2  ;  nomad,  15,  60  • 
nomenclature,  5,  6,  98,  161 ;  parts  of,  73  ; 
prices  in  Persia,  165 ;  scarcity  of  an- 
tique, 8;  specific  uses  of,  94;  table  of 
classification,  100;  tests  of  quality,  89; 
textile  tables,  reference  to,  101 ;  use  in 
Orient,  11,  13,  17,  78 

Rug  manufactories,  loi;  at  Oushak,  152; 
at  Sultanabad,  163, 196;  at  Tabriz,  162, 
170 

Rug  manufacture,  in  England,  20;  in 
France,  19;  in  India,  256,  a6i ;  in  Italy, 
19;  in  Persia,  160;  m  Spain,  18;  how 
controlled,  24 ;  in  United  States,  2,132 

Russian  influence,  in  designs  of  Kara- 
baghs,  118 


Sacred  tree,  Assyrian,  16 

Safiron,  54;  use  in  Mosul  rugs,  127 


Saiga,  fleece  used  in  Tartar  rugs,  39 

Samarkand  rugs,  64;  description,  241- 
243 ;  known  as  "  Malgaran,"  115 

Saraband  rugs,  68;  description,  197-199; 
pear  design  in,  109 

Saracenic  influence  in  Bergamo  rugs,  155 

Saracens,  18 

Sarakhs,  rugs,  description,  189-192;  me- 
dallions in,  168 

Sarandaz,  6 

Sarawan.     See  Saraband 

Sardar  design,  75 

Sarpuz,  6 

Saruk  rugs,  close  knotting  of,  89 ;  de- 
scription, 201-205 

Savalans,  name  for  Sultanabad  rugs,  196 

Saw-tooth,  reciprocal  design,  in  Beshir 
rugs,  235;  in  Kazak  rugs,  125 

Scale-makers,  86 

Scandinavia,  dyeing  and  weaving  in,  i8 

Sedjadeh  (floor-coverings),  15,  88,  136; 
Bergamo,  155 ;  description,  95 ;  Kaba- 
Karaman,  140;  Konieh,  136;  Kerman- 
shah,  188 

Sehna  kbilims,  248 

Sehna  inigs,  67;  close  clipping,  87,  no; 
close  knotting,  89;  description,  182-184; 
manner  of  weaving,  91 ;  medallion  in, 
166 

Selvage,  92 

Selvile  rugs,  198 

Serapi  rugs,  close  knotting,  89;  descrip- 
tion, 179 

Shah  Abbas,  19 

Shah  Abbas  design,  74,  166 

Shah  of  Persia,  edict  against  anilines,  48- 
51,  162 

Shawls,  36,  39,  68,  208,  256 

Sheep's-blood,  52 

Shemakha,  120 

Shemakinski  rugs,  121 

Shiite  sect,  1 1 7 ;  in  Azerbijan,  166 ;  in  Kara 
Dagh,  180;  shrine  of,  at  Meshhed,  223; 
use  of  animal  figures  by,  \% 


376 


INDEX 


Shiraz  khilims,  248 

Shiraz  rugs,  68,  122  ;  description,  312-214; 
Shirvan  rugs  sold  as,  122;  sold  as 
"  Meccas,"  2 1 7 

Shirvan  rugs,  descriprion,  121-123;  Kaba- 
Karamans  sold  as,  140;  latch-hook  de- 
signs in,  105;  likeness  to  Soumak  rugs, 
120;  marketed  in  Shemakha,  120;  sold 
as  Shiraz,  214 

Silk,  40,  174;  foundation  for  rugs,  83; 
rugs,  96 ;  weaving  in,  86 

Simakoff,  N.,  "  L'Art  de  I'Asie  Centrale," 
quoted :  on  the  tarantula  design  in  Turk- 
oman rugs,  125;  on  Turkoman  designs, 
228 

Smyrna,  rug  market,  132;  rug  names  in. 


Tabriz  rugs,  close  knotting,  89;  close 
trimming,  87;  description,  168-174; 
Italian  influence  in,  19;  made  in  imita- 
tion of  Sehnas,  184 

Tamur,  241 

Tartar  rugs,  40 ;  how  sold,  133 

Tchechen  rugs.     S^e  Tzitzi 

Tcherkess  rugs,  description,  113-116 

Teheran  rugs,  description,  201-205 

Tekke  influence  in  Yomud  rugs,  233 

Tekke  khilims,  248 

Tekke  rugs,  40  ;  even  clipping,  1 10.  See 
also  Bokhara 

Tereh.     See  Designs 

Textile  tables,  15,  loi 

Tokmak  rugs,  description,  138 


5,  98,  132;  rugs,  description,  143;  rugs    Transcaucasia,  rugs  of,  116;  preparation 


sent  to  Cairo  from,  14 
Souj-Bulak  rugs,  192 
Soumak  rugs,   description,   119-121;   de-' 

signs  similar  to  Shirvan,  122  ;  latch-hook 

design  in,  105 
Spain,  rug  manufacture  in,  18 
Spinning,  35,  38 
Springer,  L.  A.,  on  rug-weaving  in  Novi 

Varos,  quoted,  30 
Star,  emblem,  128 
St.  John,  O.  B.,  on  Kirman  rugs,  quoted, 

209 
Strabo,  17 

Sulphide  of  mercury,  used  in  dyeing,  53 
Sultanabad,  8,  163;    European   designers 

in,  163;  rugs,  description,  196 
Sumak,  root,  54 
Sunnite  doctrine,  12 
Svastika.     See  Swastika 
Swastika,  70-72;  in  Daghestan  rugs,  106; 

in  antique   Ghiordes  prayer  rugs,  147 ; 

in  Yarkand  rugs,  244 


Tabriz,  manner  of  weaving,  91 ;  rug  manu- 
facture in,  162 ;  rug  market  in,  167 


of  wool  in,  36 
Tree  forms,  66 ;  in  Ispahan  rugs,  203 ;  in 

Kurdistans,    185;   in   Mosuls,   127;    in 

prayer  rugs,   147;    in  Tcherkess,   115; 

in  turbehlik,  96;  in  Tzitzi,  112 
Trefoil,    reciprocal    design,   in    Karabagh 

rugs,  118;  in  Mosuls,  1 28 ;  in  Tzitzis,  1 1 2 
Triclinaria,  78 

Turbehlik  (grave  carpet),  description,  96 
Turkestan  rugs,  close  trimming,  87 
"Turkey   and  its   Destiny,"  C.  C.   Mac- 

Farlane,  140,  174 
Turkey,  manner  of  entertaining  guests  in,  29 
Turkish  knot.     See  Knot,  Ghiordes 
Turkish  language  used  in  Persia,  165 
Turkish   rugs,    antique,  134;    description, 

132-135;  made  upon  orders,  133 
Turkoman,  designs  in  Persian  rugs,  165; 

tribes,    129;    influence    in    Beluchistan 

rugs,  240;  rugs,  226,  227 
Turkoman  rugs,  latch-hook  in,  104;  recip* 

rocal  trefoil  in,  119. 
Turkman  rugs.     See  Genghis  rugs 
Turk's  distrust  of  European  travelers,  28 
Turmeric,  54 
Turunji  design,  76 
Tynan  purple,  42 


»77 


INDEX 


**  Tzitzi  "  rugs,  30,  63 ;  description  of,  iii- 
113;  marketed  in  Shemakha,  120 


Tzoul,  251 


U 


United  States,  manufacture  of  rugs  in,  2, 8 ; 
as  a  market  for  rugs,  i 


Vambery,  cited,  25 

Venice,  rug  manufacture  in,  19 

W 

Warp,  arrangement  on  looms,  82 ;  dyed  at 
the  ends,  84;  -fringe,  92;  in  antique 
rugs,  Ss ;  silk,  83 

Water,  solvent  quality,  essential  in  washing 
wool,  37;  in  Angora,  138;  in  Demirdji, 
151;  in  Oushak,  153;  in  mixing  dyes, 
44,  45 ;  supply  for  dyes,  45 

Weavers,  Armenian,  143 

Weavers,  boy,  in  Azerbijan,  167  j  in  India, 
258;inKirman,  170,  209;  in  Tabriz,  170; 
profession  hereditary  in  India,  253,  257; 
Karabagh,  117;  guild  of,  25;  nomad, 
25,60;  Persian,  163;  superiority  of  East- 
em,  30, 143;  superstitions  of,  92;  Turkish, 
133;  wages  of,  24,  134 

Weaving,  80 ;  ancient  and  modem  methods 
compared,  14;  Assyrian,  16;  in  Kulah 
done  by  men,  150 ;  done  by  women,  25 ; 
in  Herez,  178;  in  Indian  jails,  5,  254, 
256  J  method  of,  83;  process  of  82-87, 
89,  93 ;  tools  for,  86 


Wilson,  Thomas,  on  the  origin  of  the  Swas- 
tika, quoted,  70-72 

Women,  as  designers,  25 ;  as  weavers,  25, 
163,  178;  in  Christian  settlements,  31; 
social  conditions,  25 

Wool,  Afghan,  exported  to  Europe,  34; 
Anatolian,  35 ;  combing  of  lambs  for  fine, 
35 ;  Farsistan,  34 ;  foundation  for  rugs, 
83 ;  preparation,  36 ;  quality  required  for 
rugs,  35 ;  scarcity  in  India,  254 ;  Spanish, 
34,  3S  5  superiority  of  Eastern,  34;  Trans- 
caucasian,  ii6;  Uzbek  Tartar,  39 


Yaprak  rug  (Oushak),  152,  153 

Yaprakli,  fair  held  at,  22 

Yarkand  rugs,  64;  description,  243-245; 

tree  forms  in,  66 
Yam,  purchase   of,  39;   spinning  of,  38; 

supply   for   weaving,  85;  treated  with 

lime,  47 
Yesteklik  (Konieh),  136;   description,  95. 

S^g  also  Anatolian  mats 
Yomud  rugs,  40;    barber-pole    stripe   in, 

no;   description,  233-235;  latch-hook 

design  in,  105 
Yourdes.     S^f  Ghiordes 
Yucatan,  13,  70 

Yule,  on  Afghan  wool,  cited,  34 
Yuruk  people,  26,  140 
Yuruk  rugs,  description,  140 


Zenjan  rugs,  192 

Zoroastrians,  pear  pattern  traced  to,  68 


nt 


U' 


^:" 


RETURN       ENVIRONMENTAL  DESIGN  LIBRARY 
TOh^       210  Wurster  Hall  642-4818 


I 


LOAN  PERIOD  1 
QUARTER 


ALL  BOOKS  AAAY  BE  RECALLED  AFTER  7  DAYS 
Return  books  early  if  they  are  not  being  used 

DUE   AS  STAMPED  BELOW 


Wl^I^ 


REC'D  FNVl    1  S  ^P^  '^^ 


^P  ^  2  WQ 


DEC      7  1979 


'JUN 1 3  1980 


OCT  3 1 1986 


m-^ 


^-NVIufcS 


FORM  NO.  DD  1 3,  60m,  6'76  UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA,  BERKELEY 

\   .    .      .,  ^,  r  BERKELEY,  CA  94720 


® 


